


Collide

by vagusvagus



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Abduction, Adventure & Romance, But does it count when everyone's an alien?, F/M, General Shenanigans, It's kind of accidental, Keep your finger on that eyes emoji, Love Triangles, No Incest, Outer Space, Personal Growth, Rectangle even?, Saiyans!, Self-Discovery, Sibling Love, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Technically the alien kind, idontknowhowtotagfuck, well the first one
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2019-07-29
Packaged: 2019-08-09 01:23:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 194,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16440410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vagusvagus/pseuds/vagusvagus
Summary: Three Saiyan hybrids are roped into one of a Bulma's infamous hair-brained ideas when she finds her son at her door in the middle of the night. Sent off with nothing more than a list, some food and a spaceship, Bulla, Goten and Trunks journey through the galaxy in search of wares. What are these whisperings of other Saiyans they keep hearing? Follow them as they find adventure, intrigue, unexpected adversaries and, of course, themselves.





	1. I - A Repulsive Offer

"Ugh!" Bulla huffed as she swiftly shut the door behind her, leaning her back into it to keep it closed lest the opportunistic fools attempt to follow her right into her childhood home. "Here too? I thought they knew better than to try daddy's patience."

She was met with silence while she watched her brother barely register her arrival. He wandered past her in the CC foyer, not even looking in her direction. She frowned at his sullen expression, dropping her shoulders as she pushed herself away from the door and followed him into the living room. "Hey Trunks," she greeted sweetly, intentionally keeping her voice light.

He flopped onto the couch, extending his legs and bringing his arm to rest behind his head while he stared vacantly at the TV. Bulla leaned her elbows into the sofa's spine behind him. "I wasn't expecting her to be here tonight," she voiced casually, smiling to herself as she took in the sight of her thirty-something-year-old brother stretched out on the couch in her parents' living room, wearing a striped t-shirt, slim jeans and white socks - barely passing for someone out of high school, let alone the CEO of one of the most successful companies this side of Satan City. "I'm guessing that means you're joining us for dinner then?" She poked him in the arm when he didn't respond, eliciting a lazy swat from the melancholy Saiyan.

"Not hungry," he barely managed to grumble.

Bulla's frown returned and, instinctively, she rested her palm on his shoulder.  _What is a Saiyan without the infamous appetite?_  She offered a sympathetic rub, mildly surprised that he hadn't shooed her away this time. "Where is everyone?" the heiress asked, glancing around the room while she silently sought out her parents' respective energy signatures. Thursday nights were generally reserved for dinner with her family, and, as far as she knew, tonight was no exception. Usually, it was just Bulla, Bulma and Vegeta - Trunks often being far too caught up with work, his fiancee or his desperate need for sleep to spend his precious free hours back in the halls of his old home.

From what she could tell, her father was in his gravity room - Kami bless his relentless drive to push his limits despite being past his prime - and her mother was tucked away in her private lab, no doubt tinkering away at one of her personal projects. Despite passing the reins of her company to her son a good few years prior, Bulma appeared to be in no hurry to put her brain on the shelf, keeping herself entertained with an endless list of eyebrow-raising, yet less than marketable ideas.

"Nevermind," Bulla shrugged once she'd come to her own conclusions. Something told her not to expect an answer from her brother anyway. She hauled herself around the arm of the sofa to join him, despite there being other spots to colonise, and sat on his legs.

He groaned as he pulled his limbs in. "There's more than one couch you know."

Bulla smiled once more as she swivelled her head to gaze him.  _That's the most he's said all night. Good. Maybe if I annoy him enough I can get his mind off things for a bit._

Both halflings suddenly shifted their attention to the front door. It flew open and slammed shut all within the same blink as a tall dark-haired figure let out a heavy breath and pulled off his sunglasses.

"I'll never get used to those guys, I swear," he exhaled, turning his head towards the duo. "I don't know how you Briefs put up with it." He wandered towards the aforementioned siblings, clutching a brown paper bag in his right hand.

"Hey Goten," Bulla greeted, before twisting back around and spotting the tacky gossip mag on the glass coffee table in front of her. Her eyes raked over the bold headline: " _Melody Calls It Quits!"_ and beneath " _Everyone's Favourite Bachelor Is Back On The Market, Ladies!_ "

_Yuck._

She reached over and ignited the glossy pages in her hand, causing both men to look at her quizzically. "There's a picture of me in the back," she explained. "Wasn't my best hair day."

Goten shrugged before slipping a tall, heavy bottle out of the unmarked bag and slamming it on the glass table in front of the two hybrids. "Brought your favourite!" he announced proudly. Trunks snorted, but Bulla didn't miss the small smirk that crept onto the ends of his mouth.

"SoCo." She nodded slowly, eyeing the label. "Classy."

The dark-haired halfling let out a chuckle as he sat down in a nearby armchair. "We're not all as refined as you, you know", he teased, grinning at the heiress.

"Oh trust me." She rolled her eyes. "I know all too well. Frankly, I'm amazed that I've gone this long without completely dissociating from your entire family."

"You are definitely Vegeta's daughter." He shook his head and unscrewed the cap on the liqueur. "Would you mind grabbing us some glasses?"

Bulla reared, genuinely shocked that he would even think to ask her such a thing.

He seemed to come to his senses after a couple of seconds, pushing himself up from his seat and striding towards the kitchen, returning a few minutes later with three tumblers and a bowl of ice.

 _Oh,_  she thought to herself.  _I didn't realise I was invited to the boys night._

The intercom chimed, distracting the heiress, and she begrudgingly got up to answer it. Pressing her carefully painted fingertip to the plastic button, she spoke. "Yes?"

"Delivery for Mrs Briefs," a nervous voice croaked from the other side. Bulla assessed him through the grainy screen in front of her.  _He's kinda cute._

"I'm guessing you'll need a hand. Wait there," she responded absently, letting her finger fall and subsequently cutting off the video display. "Goten," she called out, making her way towards her bag to find her wallet. "Help me get this food inside."

The two halflings exited the front door, only to be bombarded with flashing lights and a flurry of voices asking infuriatingly intrusive questions. Maintaining their gazes ahead, both kept their mouths shut as they soldiered towards the overwhelmed delivery boy.

"Bulla! Where's your brother?"

"Bulla, any opinions on Trunks' recent break-up?"

"Bulla, are the rumours about you and the Novatech heir true?"

All she could do was clench her fist. Any level of response simply spurred them on, even threats of violence - not that she'd ever resort to such a thing. She had a reputation to uphold after all.  _Maybe daddy could get away with it, but I certainly couldn't._

Once they reached the banged-up ride of the fresh-out-of-high-school driver, Bulla offered a practised winning smile and opened her wallet. "Hi there, sorry about the commotion. How much do I owe you?"

Goten stood next to her dully, hands in his pockets while they both waited for a response. The younger boy gulped before finally finding his voice. "Uhm. The order's already paid for."

"Right." She snapped her purse closed and tilted her face up to his, finding that he was staring at her with wide eyes.  _Aw,_ she smiled to herself. "So where's the food?"

"Oh!" He hastily pivoted and threw open the back door, catching a bundle of cartons as they threatened to spill out onto the sidewalk. He passed a few full bags to Goten before giving a couple to the heiress. Two were left, and Bulla watched in amusement as he ungracefully shuffled onto his backseat to grab them. Once he was done, he reached around the door with his foot and closed it, following behind the two hybrids as they made their way back to the main entrance.

 _Deep breaths, Bulla,_ she reminded herself as the questions kept coming from all directions. She glanced over at Goten and noted the tensing vein running past his temple while he kept the rest of his expression blank.  _I know, right?_

"Just dump them on the counter," Bulla instructed, leading the two men to the kitchen. Once everything was unloaded, she discreetly pulled a few bills out of her wallet, folded them in half and turned to face the still-flustered delivery boy. Leaning in, she whispered in his ear, " _For your trouble,_ " and slipped the notes into his back pocket. His face flushed deep red before he nodded and tripped towards the exit.

"I'm pretty sure I know exactly what that kid's gonna do as soon as he gets back to his car," Goten smirked once the door closed.

Bulla shrugged her shoulders, already peering into a few nearby bags to see what was on offer. "Whatever. I gave him enough cash to show someone a  _really_ good time. Maybe he won't have to resort to that. Hungry?"

* * *

"She's still waiting to hear back," Bulla said, attempting to reach the last piece of chicken at the bottom of the carton with her chopsticks. "Of course, I told her I don't mind covering her until something comes up, but you know Pan."

"It can't be easy for her." Bulma pulled her eyebrows together in thought. "Being the granddaughter of  _two_ World Martial Arts champions definitely painted her in a light she may not have chosen before she even had a say. Not unlike you and your brother," she added, pointing her own chopsticks between the two siblings.

"Mhm." Bulla peeked into the empty boxes currently strewn around her, checking for any missed morsels. "We commiserate. Is there any more noodles?"

Goten paused mid-chew and tilted his box to the heiress, silently offering her some of his own. She scrunched her face and shook her head.

"So, Goten," Bulma turned her attention to her surrogate son. "How are things going your side? Still enjoying being in the movie business?"

"Eh." He shrugged heavily after a big swallow. "It's better than having a desk job. No offence, buddy," he added, turning to the younger of the two quiet princes. "Pay's good. When the work actually comes in."

"That reminds me," Bulla chimed in, stealing a noodle from her brother and earning herself a look. "I think I saw your girlfriend at a party a few weeks ago. Looks to me like her name's starting to get around."

"Yeah? I'll tell her you say that," he smiled, wiping the back of his hand over his mouth. "She's convinced she's just one good role away from getting her name in lights."

"Maybe I should trying being an actress," the heiress pondered out loud, tilting her head to the ceiling in thought.

"Well, you've got enough practice being a drama queen," Trunks uttered, eliciting a scoff from his sister and a laugh from his friend. "I thought you don't like being in the limelight?"

"I don't." She folded her arms. "But at this stage, I'm open to anything. I'm getting really tired of just drifting along while I try to figure out what the heck I want to do with myself now that I've finally graduated. Daddy, what do you think?"

Vegeta stared blankly at his daughter, clearly unimpressed that he was actually expected to start contributing to the mindless conversation that was going on around him. "I could not think of a more pathetic career," he finally stated, causing Goten to momentarily choke on his dinner.

"Harsh," Bulla responded as she considered his words. "But you're probably right. I spend enough time pretending to be someone else, don't need to go adding more to my plate. And don't worry, Goten." She shifted her attention to the man opposite her. "Cleo, or whatever, never would have had my dad's respect anyway. You know his stance on women who stoop to your level."

"Clara," he corrected. "And thanks. Both of you."

"Anytime." Vegeta reached for another carton, clearly satisfied with himself.

"You two are horrible." Bulma reached out and patted Goten's hand. "Don't mind them. We're all very happy for the both of you. I just love seeing glimpses of you during those action scenes and knowing sweet Goten is out there doing his thing, performing all these death-defying stunts while the rest of us mere mortals watch in awe."

"Thank you Bulma," he beamed. "You guys should come on set next time. I can show you all the little tricks and secrets from behind the scenes."

"Maybe I will," Bulla answered. "I could totally be a stuntwoman."

"Oh my God, Bulla." Trunks threw his head back in exasperation. "Why did you even bother getting that fucking communication degree? Did you ever have any intention of using it?"

"Eventually," she shrugged, allowing his remark to simply roll off her. "I wanna see what other fun things I could do first though before I sell my soul to the corporate world. No offence." She grinned at him while Goten stifled a laugh.

Bulma stood up and set one of the cleaning bots to clear the table. "Great dinner everyone, but it's late and I'm going to bed." She stretched her back and patted her stomach before walking over to Trunks and wrapping her arms around his shoulders, planting a kiss on his cheek. "Your old room's already set up for you. C'mon Vegeta." Bulma dragged her fingers over the back of her husband's neck and sauntered towards the stairs.

* * *

"So are you living here now?" Bulla queried, taking a sip of bourbon while she made herself comfortable on the couch. The three hybrids had returned to the living area after their scrumptious dinner and were currently partaking his Goten's bottle of whiskey. "What happened to your place in the city?"

"It's only temporarily," Trunks answered, leaning his elbows into the top of his thighs, silky lavender strands hanging loosely beneath his face. "While Melody moves out. The place is swarming with press. It was driving me crazy."

"Yeah I bet," she muttered, narrowing her eyes and leaning the rim of her glass into her lips. "Don't you just hate how much they get off on our misery. I wish I could scare them into fucking off, like daddy does. Do you know what one of them asked me earlier? If I was actually having an affair with Gui Nova! Ugh, as if I would even give that guy a second look."

"You still with that rich prick?" Goten asked, sitting cross-legged on the carpeted floor while he refilled his tumbler.

"Which one?" she giggled, leaning into the back of the couch she had shared with her brother earlier. "They've all been rich pricks."

"Uh. Brown hair, dad's a music producer I think," he clarified. "Rex, maybe?"

"Reco. Yeah, still seeing him. I'll be sure to tell him what you really think of him," Bulla laughed, reaching behind for a blanket and pulling it over herself.

"Goten's right," Trunks emptied his glass before slamming it on the coffee table. "He is a prick."

"He's not so bad," she sighed, feeling the room beginning to sway around her. "The media paints him in a bad light. He's actually really sweet if you get to know him."

"I do know him," Trunks muttered. "He's a prick."

Goten's phone vibrated on the table, startling the heiress - she was just beginning to nod off.

"You gonna get that?" Trunks rolled his head along the sofa arm to look upon his old friend.

"Nah, I'll let it go to voicemail," he responded, pouring the oldest of the three another glass. "Bulla?"

"I'm gonna stop there," she answered with closed eyes.  _Man, I forgot how comfortable the couches are at home._ "Too much SoCo makes me puke."

"And you call yourself a Saiyan," Goten chastised. "Looks like it's just you and me, man."

The last thing Bulla heard before drifting off was the sound of clinking glasses, followed by two pairs of laughter as one of them made some undoubtedly stupid, completely unfunny and crude joke.

* * *

The obnoxious ringing of someone's cell phone disturbed the heiress from her heavy sleep, forcing her to open her eyes. She flinched at the bright stream of light that sneaked through the curtains and hit her in the face, quickly pulling the covers back up.  _Nope, not waking up yet._

"Baby, I'm sorry alright. I just got carried away."

 _On second thought._  Bulla peered over her blanket and allowed a single turquoise eye to assess the room. Trunks was on the adjacent sectional, face buried into the back cushion, clearly still comatose, while Goten sat up on the other side, leaning his head onto the spine.  _Cute,_  she thought to herself.  _They still think nothing of sleeping together after all these years._

The heiress could hear the shrill screaming of, presumably, Goten's girlfriend coming through the earpiece and had to suppress childish laughter at hearing the older Saiyan get torn apart.

"No, I didn't see your call last night. I told you, I wasn't paying attention to my phone." At this Bulla cocked an eyebrow.

"I'm not lying. You know I'd never cheat on you. Why does it always have to come to this? It was just me and Trunks."

_Ugh._

Bulla suddenly didn't feel like hearing this conversation and decided to drag herself off the couch, eager to freshen up. She overestimated her motor function, however, and accidentally knocked her shin into the edge of the coffee table as she ambled towards the kitchen. "Ow! Fuck!" She hopped on one foot while she gripped her leg in her hands.

The phone-voice suddenly got even louder and Bulla's eyes widened, immediately realising her mistake. She froze in place while she stared at Goten, cringing as he pulled the device away from his ear with a frown.  _Sorry,_  she mouthed.

"Clara, please." He dropped his free arm to the sofa seat in defeat. "That was just Bulla. You know, Trunks' sister?" Pause. "No! Well… maybe. It's his sister, okay? Of course she wants to be there for him too. Argh!" He wiped his palm over his face. "No! I only left that out because I knew you'd freak out. Look, she's got a boyfriend, okay? What? No!"

 _Yikes_. The heiress groggily stomped over to her old room, relieved to know that she still had a respectable amount of clothes tucked away in her wardrobe. After picking a simple sundress - because to hell with anything remotely constricting right now. How on earth had she fallen asleep in that pair of white skinny jeans? - she stepped into her old bathroom and threw on the shower.

* * *

"Good morning," Bulla greeted perkily as she entered the kitchen. "Oh, that smells great." She hovered around the stove top, eagerly eyeing the pancakes currently being prepared.

"Give me another few minutes." Bulma bumped her daughter away with her hip. "Then we can all sit down and eat together."

Bulla couldn't suppress the snort that ungracefully escaped her nose on seeing her brother. He was apparently awake now but had his arms folded on the bench top with his forehead resting on his wrists. "You alive?" she pressed her palm to his shoulder and whispered into his ear. All she got back was a barely audible groan.

"Double funeral then I guess," she jested, grabbing a banana from the fruit bowl. "Because I'm pretty sure Goten's girlfriend is on the verge of murdering him." If she didn't know any better, she would have sworn she actually heard a faint chuckle come out of him. Bulla reached across the bench for a knife and small cutting board to begin preparing slivers of fruit for her upcoming stack.

"Good morning, Goten," Bulma voiced cheerfully as the aforementioned hybrid stepped into the Briefs' kitchen. "I'm making enough for everyone, so feel free to join us."

He pulled up a stool next to the heiress, looking a bit flustered. "Sounds great, thanks Bulma."

"Wow, do none of us have to go to work?" Bulla questioned, looking from her brother on her left to his friend on her right. "I mean, I know I'm a bum, but what about you two?"

"Trunks will be taking some time off," Bulma offered from the stove.

"I'm between contracts as of two days ago," Goten added. "So I'm a free man until further notice."

"What a treat to have the three of you over for breakfast!" Bulma cheered, clasping her hands together while she spun around to face the two conscious demi-Saiyans. "It's just like the old days."

"I really am sorry about earlier," Bulla spoke quietly after a few moments of silence, keeping her attention on the task in front of her, despite the fact that it didn't require all that much concentration. "She sounded pretty mad."

"Don't worry about it," he mumbled, vigorously scratching his scalp with his fingers. "She gets like that sometimes. It's not your fault."

"What are you two whispering about?" Bulma asked as she plopped the last of the pancakes on the large serving dish.

"Nothing, mom." Bulla carefully placed the plates around the seating area, letting Trunks' balance on his head. "Relationship drama. I think we all have our fair share of it." Her thoughts vaguely drifted to her own boyfriend.

 _In other news_. She eyeballed the mouthwatering sight in front of her.  _Strawberries, blueberries, bananas, maple syrup and whipped cream piled on top of a stack of delicious homemade pancakes. Kami, I couldn't give this shit up in a million years._

* * *

"You ready to go?" Bulla voiced, wrapping her scarf around her neck while she checked herself in the mirror next to the front door of her apartment.

"Yup," Pan affirmed, skipping down the passageway to join the heiress.

The two girls were currently sharing a condo that was owned by her family. The heiress had moved out during her second year of university and Pan ended up joining her unofficially half a year later when she needed an occasional place to crash after a night on the town. Before either of them knew it, two years had passed and they were full-on roomies - watching rom-coms in their pyjamas, ensuring they kept a low profile when one of them brought a guy home and commiserating over each girls' endless, yet entirely different forms of drama.

"She didn't even give a hint as to what this could be about?" Pan enquired, closing the door behind her and triple-checking it was properly locked.

"Nope." Bulla let out a breath while she headed for the stairway. "Just that the two of us should bring an open mind."

Once both girls were on the roof, they each surveyed the surrounding area before taking to the sky. "Do you have any suspicions?" the quarterling pressed, folding her arms while she drifted onto her back in thought.

"I'm about seventy percent sure she's going to suggest we work for the corporation," the heiress answered, making a face. "She knows I'll haul my ass there eventually, but maybe she's worried about the fact that we both seem kind of directionless right now." Bulla cleared some stray hairs that were attempting to dig their way into her nose. "Or maybe she just doesn't like being outnumbered and wanted some more estrogen in the house."

"I can't believe Trunks is back home," Pan uttered, dipping and arching midflight like a dolphin. "It's so weird. I've always seen him as an adult, pretty much. And now he's back living with mommy and daddy."

"It's only been a week, Pan," Bulla laughed. "It's not like he's gone full-loser. Besides, it's easier to dodge the paps at home. I don't really blame him for wanting to stay holed up in there. They've barely left  _me_ alone and I'm not even the one who got dumped."

"So..." Pan started, clearly feeling the waters.

"Nope." Bulla shook her head. "I have no idea and I'm not going to ask. If he wants to talk about it, he can, but I doubt he will. You know what he's like."

"Yeah," the quarterling sighed. "Maybe he'll talk to me though. It's different with family."

The two girls touched down on the grass behind her father's gravity room, ensuring they were well away from the street and any inquisitive eyes dying to get a glimpse of the mysterious Briefs family.

"We're here mom!" Bulla announced on entering the CC kitchen where she sensed her mother's ki. "Hello, big brother." She gave Trunks a squeeze while he sat at the kitchen bench and flicked through his phone. Pan came around the other side of him and kissed his cheek.

"Hey you two," Bulma smiled warmly at the new arrivals. "Glad to see you girls know how to keep good time."

"You've got me and Bulla all curious, Bulma," Pan grinned, grabbing the stool next to the lone male. "We couldn't get here fast enough."

"No point in beating around the bush then, I suppose. Are you three ready to hear my request?" Bulma pressed her palms into the bench opposite the hybrids, eyes falling on each of them one-by-one.

"Three?" Bulla cocked her head, arm still loosely draped over Trunks' shoulder. She shifted her attention to her brother. "You're a part of this too? What exactly's going on here?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," he shrugged, finally slipping his phone back into his pocket. "Mom hasn't said a word to me about it, outside of insisting that the two of you are here to hear it first."

"Hit me!" Pan declared, eyes already dancing with excitement.

"I would like the three of you to run a little errand for me," Bulma began, taking a moment to assess their engagement so far.

"An errand?" Bulla reared, suddenly entirely uninterested. "Mom. We have people we can pay to do that sort of thing."

"Not this kind of errand," Bulma added with a knowing smile, leaning further into the bench and lowering her face to meet the three younger ones. "I need a few individuals who are reliable, self-sufficient and, most importantly, loyal to the Briefs."

"Ooo, I feel like I'm being initiated into some kind of mob deal," Pan whispered, drumming her nails against the granite.

"Mom, c'mon," Trunks sighed. "We're not kids anymore. I feel like you're building us up to go to Disneyland or something. Just tell us what the full story is without all the hype."

"Oh, you're no fun," Bulma waved her hand at her still-gloomy son. "But fine. I have a few supplies that I need. That the company needs, in fact. And before anyone says anything." She put up her palm and closed her eyes. "Don't tell me it's not my business anymore. The Capsule Corporation will always be my business and you can pry it from my cold, dead hands."

_Jeez, mom._

"So anyway," Bulma continued. "I've been working on some designs in my downtime."

 _Of course she has._ Bulla rolled her eyes.

"And I need someone to collect a few parts for me. I already know where we can find them, and how much it should cost all up. All I need is for some brave souls to go out and gather them. So what do you kids say? Have I got your attention?"

"Why do I feel like there's something you're not telling us." Bulla narrowed her eyes at her mother.

"I'm with Bulla." Trunks folded his arms and sat up straight. "What's the catch?"

"No catch," Bulma smiled a smile that seemed suspiciously Goku-like, which was all Bulla needed to know that she wouldn't like what was coming next. "But the parts we need can't be found on earth."

It took a few moments to sink in.

" **We're going to space?!** " Pan erupted, almost jumping out of her skin as she threw her stool back.

"No." Bulla lifted her nose.

"No way." Trunks agreed, shaking his head.

"Guys, please!" Pan begged, clearly already in love with the idea. "It would be fucking incredible! The three of us combing the galaxy in search of alien tech. Oh my god!" She bounced over to the heiress and grabbed her arms. "Bulla, think about it. No job hunting, no interviews, no paparazzi, no one will know who we are! We'll just be some random earthlings."

"Pan, we have lives here," Bulla frowned.

"Hardly!" The quartering shook her shoulders. "We have no commitments. No one will miss us, plus it will be fun as hell."

Bulla gasped in offence.  _How dare she! People would totally miss me._

"While you two socialites barely keep the world turning," Trunks finally spoke up, eyeing his mother suspiciously. "Mom seems to be forgetting my role in the biggest technology company on the planet."

"You insult me." Bulma closed her eyes and turned away. "You think I didn't consider that? Of course I'd fill your seat while you're away. It couldn't be in better hands." Silence filled the room as the three Saiyan hybrids realised that Bulma was definitely serious about this plan. "Trunks." She pivoted to face her son. "Some time away from everything and a break from your regular routine is just what you need. And Bulla." Bulma shifted her attention to her daughter. "A few months away from your life of luxury will do wonders for your sense of purpose and direction. Trust me."

_Months?! Oh hell no._

"I can see the two of you have some reservations," Bulma added, placing a palm on each child's arm. "All I ask is that you think about it. I can't really ask this of anyone else and, if I'm being honest, I don't particularly want to. Not only would you be doing the company a massive favour, I think it would do both of you the world of good."

"I'll twist her arm Mrs B," Pan pledged, hooking her arm through the younger girl's elbow. "I'll get her on that ship like my life depends on it."

"Thank you, Pan," Bulma smiled, all seriousness dissolved from her features. "I knew I could count on you to be on my side for this one."

 _Space?_ Bulla stuck out her tongue in disgust _. I'd rather eat my own hair._


	2. The Answer's Still No

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, fuck. I just learned that there is already another fic in the DB fandom with the same title and it's written by none other than legendary author Lady Lan. She's literally on my favourites list on FFN, so how I missed this I have no idea. No joke, I even did my homework (obv. not very well) but here we are. Anyway, I've left the title as it is, for now, to give you guys a heads up that I might end up changing it. I haven't quite decided what the right thing to do is yet, but keep an eye out for that. (How you'd go about doing this, idk sorry.) Apologies for any inconvenience, and apologies to Lady Lan. FWIW the title came from the song Collide by GIVERS. It's been my morning jam for months :')
> 
> Now to think up a new name, Fuuuuu

"Pan, stop!" Bulla groaned. An iconic shade of aquamarine caught her eyes and caused her to pause at a flimsy newspaper stand while she wandered through the streets of central West City. "You're driving me nuts. I said you could bring it up once per day and you're already way past your quota. If you keep this up I'm going to say no just to spite you."

"Okay fine!" Pan conceded, showing her palms, deep brown orbs landing on the same magazine that caught the heiress' attention. "Hey, that's you… and?" She reared as she processed the image. "My uncle?"

"Ugh. These people," the heiress grumbled, taking in the headline.  _Bulla Briefs Spotted Cozying Up With West City Stuntman._ "'Cozying Up'? We walked out of my parents' house together to pick up some goddamn food. When are they going to leave me and my love life the hell alone?"

Pan started to giggle. "Look at you two. What a power couple. I have to admit, Bulla, they seem pretty hell-bent on painting you as some loose bimbo."

"I know, right!" Bulla proceeded to flick through the magazine to find the relevant article. "I've been faithful in every relationship I've ever had since I was like fourteen, but they're convinced I can't keep my hands to myself. Meanwhile, Pan Son is eating up every man over the age of twenty and no one bats an eye!"

"Hey!" the quarterling interjected, attempting to look offended. "What are you trying to say? That I'm some kind of cheater?"

"Obviously not." Bulla rolled her eyes, finally finding the page she was looking for. "You'd actually need to get serious with someone in order to cheat on them."

The older girl started laughing out loud. "Well, at least you aren't constantly held to the same moral standard as your grandparents. I swear to Kami, if I even sneeze without covering my mouth people get up in arms." Her expression fell. "Do you know how hard it is to land a fucking job when  _everyone's_ seen your mugshot? I'd rather be seen as a 'serial dater' than a 'bad girl'."

Bulla dropped her arms, frowning sympathetically at her best friend. When it came to 'who gets it worse in the eyes of the media' there were no winners.

"Hold up." Pan yanked the magazine out of Bulla's fingers and squinted at the photos in front of her. "Is his hand on your…?" She folded the book in half and held a finger to the image in question. Bulla leaned in, narrowing her eyes.

"Ah!" the heiress shrieked. "What the hell?! It must have been manipulated. His hands were nowhere near my ass!"

"I dunno," Pan brought the page back into her own view. "It looks pretty convincing to me. Look, there's a little interview." The two girls huddled around the write-up.

"Those dirty rats!" Bulla exclaimed. "They totally hounded that delivery kid after he left my house." Her eyes continued to scan the passage, fury growing with each sentence.

"' _He seemed possessive?_ ' ' _Wouldn't let us anywhere near her_?' Ugh." The heiress continued to read the rest out loud. ' _Goten Son has long been associated with the Briefs family, often seen out partying with Bulla's older brother and Capsule Corp. CEO, Trunks Briefs, during their younger days_.  _It seems now that the heiress has blossomed into a fine beauty herself, he's decided to make his move'_? Oh my God, it gets worse." Her ki was beginning to climb. ' _They arrived just minutes apart and were seen leaving roughly the same time the next morning. It's anyone's guess what happened behind those closed doors_ '." Bulla stepped away from the trash-filled pages. "I'm going to throw up."

"This is why we shouldn't waste our time on these stupid gossip columns, Bulla," Pan chastised, placing the magazine back on the rack and hooking her arm into the elbow of the silently fuming halfling. "You know nothing good ever comes of it."

"I know." Bulla closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. "But I couldn't help myself when I saw that ridiculous front page photo. I mean, seriously, Goten? He's practically family. Not to mention, an idiot."

"You are so Vegeta's daughter," Pan chuckled, pulling the heiress away from the vendor before she made a scene. "Nothing sells like 'Bulla the socialite', I guess. Except maybe 'Bulla the style icon'. Can you imagine what would happen if they found out the real you?"

The heiress shuddered at the thought.  _Something tells me 'Bulla the kickass, inhumanely strong, half-alien martial artist' wouldn't work too well in my favour._

"Just think." Pan tightened her hold on the younger girl's arm. "No stupid rumours while we're in space. No false reputation. You'll just be Bulla the Earthling. And instead of Pan the Drop Out, Pan the Disappointment, Pan the Loose Canon, I'd just be Pan Son: Granddaughter of who-the-hell-cares."

"I won't have my bed in space," Bulla countered. "Or my shower. Or the rest of my damn apartment."

"Is that really all that's stopping you?" Pan pulled back to regard the spoiled princess. "This has nothing do with having a boyfriend?"

"What?" Bulla scrunched her face. "You really think I'd put off doing something I truly wanted to do  _for Reco_? Please. And here I thought you actually knew me."

"Well then let's just freakin' do it! Encapsulate your bed, tell Bulma to fit the world's best shower head and let's gooo!"

The heiress frowned.

"Bulla." Pan held her palms to the younger girl's shoulders and dropped her head in exasperation. "You know you want to do this! You just need to push yourself out of your comfort zone and imagine all the amazing experiences we could have. When we come back, we can do the boring adult thing."

She was beginning to consider Pan's words when she caught a white flash in the corner of her eye. Instinctively, both girls began walking back the way they came at a hurried pace until they found a narrow alleyway and ducked in. Seeing that the coast was clear, they took to the sky and waited on top of the multi-storey brick building while they watched the confused paparazzo spin around, scratching his head.

"Okay, I'll do it," Bulla sighed, head hanging over the edge of the roof while she continued to stare down into the alleyway below. "Why the hell not. It could be like the days when my mom used to go out adventuring with your Grandpa. We'll have our own stories to bore our kids to death with." She offered a grin to the girl next to her.

"Yes!" Pan leapt into the air in celebration. "I knew I'd wear you down eventually."

* * *

"So get this," Bulla said with a mouth full of popcorn, curled up on the sofa while Pan scratched through the kitchen cupboards nearby. "I spoke with my mom while you were out running earlier, and she said everything will be ready in less than a week. Plus, there'll be another member in our party."

"What?" Pan pulled her head out and stared at the heiress. "Who? Please don't tell me it's your dad. He's such a killjoy."

"Not my dad." Bulla shook her head. "Although I would probably prefer him over your uncle."

"What?!"

"I know," Bulla sighed, plucking another piece of popcorn from her bowl and throwing it into her mouth. "Apparently my brother asked him to join so that he wouldn't have to put up with us on his own. I would've made more of a fuss, but I figured Trunks could probably do with some quality time with his BFF."

"Hold on," a male voice cut in between the two girls. "You told me this was going to be a family thing? Plus Pan."

"That's what I thought it was too," Bulla shrugged before running her fingers through his golden brown, shoulder-length hair. "But Trunks went and changed the game a little."

"To be fair, Reco," Pan added, finally returning to the living room to join the two in front of the TV. "Goten is practically a Briefs too."

"I don't like him." He folded his arms.

"Well, the feeling's mutual," Bulla mumbled to herself.

"What?" He turned his head to face the heiress.

"Nothing," she smiled. "Pan's right. I can see why my mom would be happy to have him involved. Who knows if the extra muscle could come in handy." She took in his clearly frustrated expression, noting how the space between his eyebrows was beginning to crease. "What are you thinking right now?"

"It doesn't sit right with me," he finally admitted, soft blue eyes meeting her own bright aquamarines.

"Why not?" she frowned, readjusting to face him more easily. "You said you were fine with the idea."

"Well, yeah. That was when you told me it was a trip with Pan and your brother. This is different."

"How is this different? Now it's Pan, my brother and another guy that's basically my brother."

Pan was looking between the two socialites, slowly lifting herself off the ground, apparently anticipating a  _discussion_  that she had no business being around for. Without a word, she padded over to her room and closed the door behind her.

"Except he's not."

"He's not what?" Bulla's voice held a hint of warning.

"Your brother."

The heiress narrowed her eyes. "Stop dancing around the subject and come out and say what's on your mind, Reco."

"Forget it," he exhaled. "You're going to do whatever you want to anyway, and all that's going to happen if I keep talking is another pointless argument. Go travel the galaxy with that fucking asshole, I don't care."

Bulla gasped. "Take that back, you jerk." She pulled away and puffed out her cheeks. "Goten Son is plenty of things, but he is no asshole. I would know, because I have a long list of insults specially curated just for him."

He glanced at her dully, arms still folded.

"Name one time he was an ass towards you," she demanded.

"I'd rather not," Reco grumbled, shifting his gaze towards the TV.

"What are you not telling me?" she pressed. "Have you two had some run in while I wasn't around or something? Because you sure as hell don't talk on the rare occasions you're both at my parents' house."

He stared back at her, seemingly contemplating his next words when Pan suddenly came racing out of her bedroom in a flurry of screams.

"Ohmygod ohmygod!" The quarterling hopped on the spot in front of the heiress, palms covering her mouth. Bulla exchanged a baffled glance with the man next to her.

"Yes, you weirdo?" Bulla couldn't help the smile that crept onto her face at the sight of her best friend showing such childlike enthusiasm. "Wait." Her eyes began to widen as she slowly realised the only thing that could give Pan such a high. "Is this…?"

Pan nodded while letting out a squeak. Bulla jumped up too, joining her fellow hybrid as they danced around on the living room carpet, clutching each other's elbows while they spun in a circle. "You did it!" Bulla squealed.

"I did it!" Pan rasped back.

"But... when?" The heiress stopped bouncing, her expression beginning to fall as she realised what this could mean.

"Training starts two weeks from now," Pan answered softly, also coming to a stop.

"So..." Bulla frowned at the older girl.

"I'm sorry, Bulla," Pan began. "I can't turn this down. I've applied every year for the past four years. If I say no now, I can kiss the whole thing goodbye."

"No, of course." Bulla pressed a palm to her forehead. "You have to take it, but that just means..."

Both girls turned to face the befuddled man on the sofa.

Despite not knowing the details, he seemed to at least pick up the part that was most relevant to his own concerns.

"I have to go to space without you," Bulla whispered remorsefully.

* * *

"Hi, Goku!" Bulla greeted amiably, offering the veteran warrior a hug. Despite his long-standing rivalry with her father, she couldn't bring herself to think anything but positively about the man. Maybe it was her mother's influence over the years, but something about the old Saiyan just warmed her heart, even if he was a bit of an embarrassment from time to time. "Chi-Chi." She embraced the slight form of the ageing housewife. "I wasn't expecting to see you guys out here today."

It was a pleasant, sunny September afternoon in West City and the Briefs were gathered in one of her mother's colossal hangars. The multi-storey, corrugated doors were open wide and the ceiling was partially retracted, allowing plenty of light into the otherwise sparse and chilly building.

"It's not everyday my baby goes off to space," Chi-Chi responded clutching her hands in front of her. "Oh, Goten please be safe. I haven't met your grandchildren yet, and you owe me that much before you go getting yourself killed."

"Nice, mom," he mumbled, rubbing the back of his head while he walked over to join the three martial artists. "Way to show your priorities."

"Don't worry, Chi-Chi." Bulla wrapped her arm around Goten's waist and gave a squeeze. "Trunks and I will keep your precious boy safe so he can fulfil his life's quest and give you plenty of grandbabies." She grinned up at the man beside her. His deepening frown only caused her to let out a chuckle.

"Goten." Bulla, along with the three Sons, turned to face the voice behind them, barely veiling its annoyance. On seeing the petite redhead, the heiress quickly dropped her arm and allowed for some space between her and her fellow halfling.

"Hey Clare," Bulla greeted politely, offering a winning smile. "Long time no see."

Goten visibly winced, much to the heiress' confusion.  _I thought I was being nice?_

"Clara," was all the older girl said before closing her eyes and lifting her nose.

_Shit._

"Yeah, that's what I said," Bulla smiled, not skipping a beat. "I'll leave you guys to say your goodbyes while I catch up with the others." And casually sauntered away.

"So, daddy," Bulla beamed, bouncing over to her father with her hands held together. "You going to miss me?" He didn't answer, to no one's surprise. "Of course you will!" She threw her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "Your favourite child is about to go out into the scary, deep dark corners of the galaxy. I'm sure you won't be able to sleep a wink while I'm gone." She prodded him in the chest. His arms remained folded, expression unflinching. "Look at you, trying to hide how much you love me," she teased.

"Remember your training," he stated abruptly. "And don't underestimate  _anyone_. The rest of the galaxy isn't filled with creatures as meek and complacent as those found on this planet"

"Of course," she placated. "I learned from the best, after all. No one will be able to get within five feet of me without my okay."

Staying with her father, Bulla surveyed the rest of the room. Gohan and Videl were standing near the railing that circled the ship, caught up in conversation with Goten and his girlfriend -  _Clara!_  - Bulla reminded herself,  _Probably best I keep my distance for now_. A pair of bare arms encircled her waist, followed by a stubbled kiss to the back of her neck.

Bulla pivoted on her heel. "Look who finally showed up," she smiled. "You almost missed the launch, you bum."

"Yeah, sorry. Went out with the guys after I left your place last night," Reco rasped groggily, wiping his hands over his eyes. "Hey, Vegeta." He nodded at her father, only to be met with a look of complete disgust before the prince wandered off, undoubtedly seeking out his one-time nemesis. "I think I'm beginning to wear him down," he added optimistically.

"I think you're wrong," she giggled, arms hanging loosely either side of his neck while he rested his hands on her hips. "But whatever. He doesn't think anyone's good enough for me, so it's nothing personal." Bulla stretched up to kiss him, silently musing that there was no telling how long she'd be going without another man's lips on her own.

"Mmm," he groaned into her mouth. "How am I going to last all that time without that tight little body keeping me warm at night."

Bulla glanced around the room, noting that Goten and Clara were currently in the middle of their own goodbyes. "We can still call each other when I'm free," she shrugged. "I have no idea how busy I'll be, but I bet there'll be plenty of hours just cooped up on the ship doing nothing with the two meatheads." She threw her thumb behind her in the direction of the older halflings. Mentioning Goten probably wasn't the best idea, she realised too late, as it seemed to cause Reco to look up and quietly assess the dark-haired fighter. His grip on Bulla's waist tightened momentarily while his eyes narrowed. "Reco." She gripped his cheeks with her right hand and forced his face back to meet her own. "Get whatever you're thinking out of your head."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he mumbled, words slurred due to her fingers still squeezing either side of his face. "If he tries anything with you though," he warned. "My boys and I will kick his fucking ass. I don't care how experienced he is at fighting."

"Did you have to go and ruin this nice moment?" she grumbled, letting her arm drop from his shoulder. Once again she looked over to her brother's oldest friend. He was frowning down at Clara when he seemed to catch Bulla's gaze. He looked up at the heiress, a face of exasperation. Something told her he was currently going through the same pointless conversation as she was. He transferred his attention to Reco and for a split second Bulla felt a jolt in his ki. If she hadn't been watching him, she would never have given it a second thought, but it coincided too closely with the scowl that appeared on his usually jovial face when he locked eyes with her boyfriend.  _Guys are such neanderthals_ , she rolled her eyes.

"Love you, Bulla," Reco called out as she strode towards the ship. She simply threw up a peace sign, smirking to herself as she caught the tail end of Clara's words to Goten.  _That girl is a dictator for sure. He must really love her if he can put up with that shit all day._

She spotted Pan with Bulma and Trunks on the opposite side of the vessel and hopped on to her brother's back. He gripped the underside of her legs without a second thought, continuing his conversation with the two ladies as if he hadn't suddenly gained an entire extra person.

"Would you like me to give you a rundown of the ship's controls, Bulla?" Bulma offered. "It's worth knowing about the fail-safes and various backup measures if things go south."

"Nope. That's what we've got Trunks for, right?" Bulla grinned, ruffling her brother's hair, but her mother didn't seem to appreciate her flippancy. "I'm just kidding. Trunks can show both of us once we're settled. I'm sure we'll run out of things to talk about reeeally fast. Any chance you've changed your mind at the last minute, Pan? Now that the ship is right there." She bopped her head to the right.

"You have no idea how badly I wish I could join you," the quarterling pouted, shoulders slumping. "If things don't work out with the rangers, Bulma's already promised I can take one of the smaller pods and meet up with you. It's a zippier model, so I'll catch up in a fraction of the time." Bulla threw an arm out to the older girl while the other clung to her brother's neck. Pan extended her own arms, wrapping one around Bulla and the other around Trunks, pulling both in for a tight hug. "Be safe, you guys," she mumbled into Trunks' shirt, before giving each a chaste kiss. "Trunks, keep this girl in one piece. I'm not ready to face the adult world without her."

"Yeah, yeah," he nodded, tossing his cigarette butt. "If I were you, I'd be more worried about the aliens. The galaxy hasn't seen the likes of us Saiyans in decades."

"Damn right!" Bulla extended her fist to the ceiling. "Beware everyone. Saiyan royalty is rearing its ugly head once more! Stand back and bow down before us! Right daddy?" She swivelled her head to face her father, a smug grin plastered on her face. Goku was chuckling while her father smirked at her childishness. Gohan was rubbing the back of his neck as Goten dragged his palm over his face. "That includes you, Goten," she faux-threatened, pointing at him sternly. "Disrespect my royal blood at your own peril." She heard Clara scoff while she said something under her breath. "What was that Chloe? I didn't catch that."

"Babe." Goten rested his palms on his girlfriend's shoulders and gently pulled her back. "She's kind of telling the truth," he uttered loud enough for Bulla to hear.

"Very good, Goten," Bulla praised. "I may consider promoting you to court jester if you continue to appease me."

"The only one acting like a clown right now is you," her brother ribbed from beneath her.

"Shush you," she pushed his head. "Steeds don't talk. C'mon, let's get off this mudball. Goten, can you grab my bag?" She pointed to the leather duffel at her boyfriend's feet.

"Yes, your majesty," he exhaled, reaching for the black handles. While he was bent over, Reco pressed his fingertips into the halfling's chest and muttered something that Bulla couldn't quite hear. What she did note, however, was the smirk that cracked on Goten's face along with the very obvious,  _Fuck you_  that formed on his lips, before confidently making his way to the two Briefs siblings.

"Alright, boys." Bulla threw her arm in the direction of the remarkably compact CC spaceship. "Let's go shopping!"

And with that, the three half-Saiyans soldiered up the ramp, Bulla still hitching a ride on her brother's back while Goten Son trailed directly behind, no doubt relishing his final moments of sanity.


	3. Logistics

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After much deliberation (i.e not a lot at all) and some reassurance, I've decided to just leave the name as it is, mostly because I don't feel like changing it :( If you knew my pet's names over the years you'd understand why I should never name anything, ever.
> 
> Also, apologies to those of you who received a notification for this chapter twice. I dun goofed (surprise surprise), so had to quickly delete it the first time I submitted it, make a few adjustments and then upload it again.

"Oh God," Bulla uttered as she took in her surroundings, slowly dropping to her feet while her brother released his grip on her legs. "It's way smaller in here than I was expecting. Are you sure there's enough room for the three of us? Did mom prepare the wrong ship?"

They were standing in the entrance of what looked to be the main control room. Directly in front of her, on the opposite side, were four cushioned seats with red velvet coverings facing a generous window that stretched across a wide arc, offering near-panoramic views of the outside world.

"This is the right ship, Bulla. Mom and I readied it together, with the help of Gohan and Videl. It's not what you're used to, but this will be our life for the next few months," Trunks answered, entirely unsympathetic, while he made his way towards the console. To her untrained eye, it was nothing more than an endless string of unmarked buttons, dials and levers. "If you don't think you can handle it, this is your last chance to change your mind."

She bit the inside of her lip as she considered his words. She'd be lying if she said her heart wasn't beginning to pound or that her palms weren't starting to feel a touch clammy. _It would be so nice to just get back into bed right now…_

"I might be a princess," Bulla finally responded, following him towards the chairs, noting the size of the bolts that secured them to the ship floor. "But I'm no quitter. I told mom I'd get her silly parts and that's what I'm going to do. Now, how do I strap this thing in?"

"Let me," Goten offered, kneeling in front of her while he reached for the first retractable belt. Bulla went for the other and the two halflings found themselves fumbling as they attempted the click them together, completely lacking any sense of coordination.

"I think I've got it, thanks," Bulla mumbled, nudging his hands away. He simply stood up and found his own seat, locking himself in before the heiress even got her two pieces inline, much to her embarrassment. She cast a discreet glance at the dark-haired halfling, spying how he managed to marry the finicky mechanism. _Oh!_ "Gotcha," she whispered when she finally heard the satisfying click, pulling the crisscrossing belts off her chest momentarily to check they were properly secured.

"You two ready?" Trunks enquired over his shoulder while he bent over the console, hand hovering near a red flashing button.

"Aye aye Captain Trunks." Bulla brought her index and middle fingers to her forehead.

"Let's do this," Goten affirmed. "Before Bulla realises I grabbed the wrong bag."

"What?!" The heiress couldn't turn her head fast enough, throwing daggers at the man next to her.

Trunks smashed the bright plastic knob with his fist and promptly took the nearest chair, strapping himself in in one swift motion. A deep rumble soon filled their ears, followed by the faint wobbling of their surrounds. Before they knew it, all three half-Saiyans were being thrust into their seats and slingshotted towards the airspace above the compound, the sky through the window gradually darkening until all they saw was black.

* * *

"I hope for your sake that you were kidding about my bag," Bulla warned, hurriedly undoing her belts. An automated voice had just informed them that it was now safe to wander the vessel and the heiress was the first to act on that tidbit. Happy to be on her feet once again, Bulla partially unzipped her standard issue CC orange and black jacket, revealing the simple white crew neck t-shirt underneath. With her hands on her hips, she surveyed the room more carefully.

She hadn't noticed it when she first came in, but there appeared to be something resembling a door to the left of the main exit. Bulla walked over to it, hovering her hand above the heavy panel when she spotted a slim box along the left-hand side. A large low-profile button screamed out to be pressed, so she did. In an instant, the door disappeared into the wall, revealing a narrow passageway with yet more doors. "Oh thank God," she muttered mostly to herself. "I'm guessing this means I won't need to share a room with you two bozos."

Her brother came up behind her. "I suppose now's as good a time as any to give you guys a tour." He slipped past and turned around to face the two hybrids who were still standing in the doorway. Bulla noted that he had already discarded his own jacket, now donning nothing more than a grey t-shirt, black utility pants and the same black and orange CC boots that all three of them had been given before the launch. "These are our rooms. There's four of them, so go ahead and pick one. And Bulla," he added with a knowing smirk. "Don't bother trying to figure out which one is the best. They're all the same."

Bulla poked her head into the first room for a few seconds before turning to look at her brother, confusion written all over her face. "Where's the ensuite?"

"Right there." He pointed his thumb to the single door at the end of the hallway, barely making any attempt to mask his amusement.

"Please tell me you're joking," Bulla breathed, staring at the laminated sign depicting both male and female stick figures.

"If you want a shorter route to the bathroom each morning I suggest you pick a suite quickly because this one's already mine." He walked over to one of the two doors closest to said bathroom.

"Looks like this will be my new haven until further notice." Bulla dragged herself over to the door directly opposite her brother's, assessing the interior. _Every metre counts in this place._

"I'll grab this one." Goten was standing at the suite adjacent to the heiress', clutching the door frame while he surveyed the room. "The further I am from Trunks' snoring the better. Not to mention, closer to the kitchen."

 _Naturally._ Bulla rolled her eyes.

"You've already sussed that out, have you?" Trunks raised an eyebrow. "Calling it a kitchen is a bit of a stretch, but sure. Since we've all figured out where we're sleeping, let's check out the rest of this place." Between Bulla and Goten's rooms was an aluminium ladder which Trunks was the first to ascend. Bulla followed.

Taking in the sight before her, the heiress could understand why her brother was so reluctant to label this loft as anything but that. The area was quaint, to put it mildly, only made to feel even smaller by the curved ceiling. There was a three-seater couch facing a low coffee table and modest TV set. On the other side of the room was a short stretch of bench space already half-occupied by small appliances. _Microwave, kettle, toaster_ , Bulla mentally checked off in her head. An unassuming mini-fridge sat on the floor.

 _Oh no._ A feeling of dread washed over her as she realised what meals would probably end up looking like for the next while.

_No pancakes with whipped cream?_

* * *

Bulla decided to retreat to her room while the boys got comfortable upstairs. She could hear their deep muffled voices through her ceiling and attempted to distract herself by taking closer stock of her suite. There were precisely four pieces of furniture from what she could see while she stood at the room's entrance: an aluminium-alloy framed single bed along the left wall with a bedside table and gooseneck lamp, and, directly opposite the cot, a plain desk next to a built-in closet. Pan's clever suggestion of bringing her beloved bed along was, unfortunately, dead in the water, as the rooms we're painfully short on space. In hindsight, the heiress shouldn't have been surprised - _What was I expecting? This isn't a cruise ship and we're not on holiday. We're here to work. More room for sleeping means a bigger ship. Bigger ship equals more energy requirements. My mom's way too efficiency-driven to approve the development a utility space vessel that burns through fuel unnecessarily._

The door closed automatically behind her once she stepped in, causing her a pivot with a start. _Oh, a clock._ There was a digital display of the time above the doorway. _14:37,_ it told her. _Too early to sleep. May as well make this space my own._

Bulla strode towards the control room in search of her bag and immediately began sifting through it on her way back. _Number_ _27, Clothes._ She pressed the button and tossed the cap to the floor, getting on her knees while she sorted through the folded garments. It was all much of the same: utility pants, skirts, jackets and a few spare pairs of boots. All black and orange, branded with the family's company logo. Her t-shirts, tank tops, socks and underwear were all white. Naturally, she would have preferred to wear normal clothes, but her mother had managed to convince her of the impracticality of standard earth garb. These CC designs were hard-wearing, easy to spot clean, insulated without being bulky and, dare she admit it, pretty darn comfortable. Bulla tied her long aquamarine tresses into a messy bun above her head and got to work.

* * *

After packing her cupboards, she found herself dissatisfied with the bareness of the rest of the space. _What am I, in prison?_ Unfortunately for her, she hadn't thought to pack much in the way of trinkets and accessories to dress up her new room. For now, she'd have to be happy with the handful of photos she stuck above her desk and on the wall next to her bed.

There was a sudden knock at her door.

"Yeah?" Instinctively, she swung her head around, despite being able to sense who was on the other side. The door slid open while Goten leaned his shoulder against the frame.

"You busy? Trunks wants to go over the game plan," he spoke, eyes lazily glossing over the small personal adjustments she'd made to the otherwise barren cell. "Wow, you don't mess around, do you?"

Bulla stood up, loosening her bun and shaking out her hair while she walked towards the exit, glancing at the clock before passing the threshold. _15:50. Is that all?_

"Alright." She squeezed past him and levitated to the second floor.

"I hear we're having a team meeting," Bulla voiced, kneeling down on the rug near the sofa where her brother was currently seated. Goten was next to her with his arms folded while he kept his attention on the oldest hybrid.

"I want to go over a few points for the sake of housekeeping, and then give you guys a break down of what's going to happen," Trunks started, looking between the two halflings. "First, water. We have to use it sparingly since it's probably our most valuable resource outside of fuel and oxygen. The drains all lead to a machine that recycles and purifies the waste with little very loss, however, it will still deplete over time. So: quick showers, and do as much in batches as possible. The water tanks need to be topped up every four-or-so weeks, so we'll be doing that, along with refuelling and taking care of any laundry during pit stops."

"When you say recycled..." Bulla said suspiciously, narrowing her eyes.

"It's exactly how it sounds," Trunks answered, face blank.

"Dude," Goten reared.

"I'm only talking drains here," he clarified. "Our drinking water is a separate supply and the toilet leads to-"

" **I don't want to hear about this anymore!** " Bulla cried, covering her ears with her hands. "Can we please move on to something else... " she begged, scrunching her face.

"Fine." He shrugged off her disgust. "The short story of our journey is this: we're after twenty-eight individual parts comprised of twelve elements not found on earth. We'll be visiting four planets to get everything we need. The longest stretch is between earth and our first stop - Bhander. We should be there in roughly three weeks. Assuming it takes us three to ten days on each planet, we can plan to be back home somewhere around four months from now."

Bulla turned to the man beside her, eyes wide. He simply nodded at her brother as if that all sounded just gravy.

_So, I'm clearly a huge idiot. How did I agree to all this without knowing what exactly I was signing up for beforehand?_

"You alright there, Bulla?" her brother suppressed a laugh. "You look like you're circling the drain a little."

The heiress gulped.

* * *

"So, I just realised," Bulla pondered out loud. "Why isn't everything floating around us? Like, why isn't this food just swimming in front of my face right now?" She held her tray up to her brother who was standing nearby, staring at the TV while she sat on the far end of the couch.

"The gravity aboard the ship is kept artificially high to match earth's," he answered over his shoulder.

"Handy," she considered, taking a moment to chew her food. "And what will the gravity be like on other planets?"

"Probably quite different to what we're used to," he responded, turning around to grab her empty dish before walking towards the kitchen. "But we'll all be able to deal just fine. The atmospheres will be mostly breathable too. Mom's done her research, things could definitely be worse."

"What about talking to locals?" Goten asked from Bulla's left, wiping his mouth as he stretched out his legs and hooked his arms behind the spine of the couch.

"According to my dad," Trunks began, returning to the living area and sitting down between the two halflings. "Most of the galaxy seems to speak the same standard language, earth included. I guess it makes sense when you consider all the aliens our families have encountered over the decades without having to deal with a language barrier... Who knew our humble planet was that progressive. We might come across a few groups with their own native dialects, but that shouldn't be a huge issue."

Bulla draped her legs over the tops of her brother's thighs as she twisted to face him, cheek leaning into the back of the sofa. "That was the most boring thing I've eaten in my entire life."

He rolled his head to meet his sister's gaze. "Are you still hungry?"

"No."

"Then it did its job then, didn't it," he smiled.

Bulla stuck out her bottom lip, forcing a dramatic frown. Trunks let out a laugh before shifting her legs aside and getting up once more.

"I'm gonna break in the shower," he asserted, walking over to the edge of the loft and floating down. Bulla watched after him, listening for the opening and closing of the bathroom door, suddenly acutely aware of how strange her current circumstances were. Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at Goten.

"I'm with you, Bulla," he said, grimacing as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I think I'm going to miss earth food more than anything."

 _Really? More than your gem of a girlfriend?_ she snorted to herself.

"What?" he asked, looking at her sceptically.

"Nothing," she chortled, distracting herself with the TV. _Ugh. This is going to be an awkward four months. Why did he have to come? This would be way more comfortable if it was just me and Trunks._

"I think I'm going to go to bed," Bulla sighed, stretching her arms up while she bent backwards.

"It's eight-thirty."

 _Yeah, I and don't really feel like hanging out with you._ "I'm tired."

"See you tomorrow I guess," he shrugged, leaning into his fingers while he stared at the screen in front of him.

Bulla filled her flask with water before hopping down to the bottom floor. After entering her room she let out a breath. _Okay, didn't really think that through. I'm not even a little bit sleepy._ Tossing her jacket to her cot, she threw her hair into a ponytail and tensed her core, bringing her fists up to eye level. _May as well do some exercise to tire myself out._

* * *

"Come in, Trunks," Bulla breathed, wiping her palm over her forehead and clearing her sweaty fringe from her eyes.

"You alright?" he asked once the door opened. "Goten said you were tired, but you've been at it for like an hour." He was back in his grey t-shirt, but now wore a pair of loose charcoal shorts.

"I'm done now." She took a big gulp of water and sat at the edge of her bed. "Couldn't sleep after all. How was the shower?"

"You'll find out soon enough," he smirked. "You don't want to hang with us upstairs?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "Felt like being on my own. Besides, I think I really am going to sleep soon."

He simply nodded as he took a step back and ascended the ladder.

Bulla grabbed a towel from her closet as well as a change of clothes. _Definitely not going to go walking around in a towel. It's not me and Pan anymore._

She waltzed through the bathroom door, placing her towel and fresh clothes on the closed toilet lid to the left while she eyed the shower to her right. After stripping down she took a tentative step into the compact cubicle and stood under the shower head, taking a breath before she turned it on.

"Ah!" she shrieked. It felt like she was being pelted by thousands of tiny bullets each second. She turned around to share some of the load with her back. _What the hell? Who designed this thing? Ow._ Bulla could faintly hear laughter in the distance. No doubt the two boys were entertained by her surprise at being attacked in the shower of all places.

Not wasting any time, she cleaned up, rinsed off and smacked the tap head. After rubbing herself down and towelling the excess water from her tresses, she got dressed, brushed her teeth and scurried to her room.

 _Hmm, maybe I should've taken mom's advice and gone a bit shorter,_ she thought as she threw her hair forward and combed it out. It was almost halfway down her back, but she was reluctant to cut it off. _People have enough of a hard time telling me and her apart as it is._

She sat on the edge of her bed with raised ki, allowing her body heat to partially dry her locks while she got lost in thought. Once again she heard the vague voices of her brother and Goten above her, talking about who knows what.

 _In a way, I'm glad Trunks has someone for this trip._ A small smile formed on the ends of her lips as she dropped down on to her pillow. _Kami knows he didn't have time to see Goten back on earth. I really do wonder what happened with Melody though…_

She was starting to drift off when she heard footsteps above her, soon followed by movement in the adjacent room. _Looks like my neighbour's back._ After a few more minutes of shuffling, she heard the bathroom door open and close. Carefully tuning in, she waited for the sound of the shower.

"Fuck! _"_

Bulla threw her palm over her mouth, cackling wildly to herself while she rolled on top of her sheets.

_Good, now we've all had a turn._

She took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

… _What have we gotten ourselves into?_

* * *

Bulla groaned as she reluctantly opened her eyes. _It's way too early to be woken up by the sound of male grunting._ She glanced at the clock above her bed - 08:12 it told her - and pushed into her palms, taking a moment to stare at her pillow before rolling out of bed. Reaching for her pants and jacket, she quickly made herself decent and slipped into the bathroom.

Once she was sufficiently freshened up, she wandered into the control room to find her brother and Goten shirtless while they traded blows. Her arrival caused a momentary distraction, resulting in Goten catching a kick to the head.

"Good morning cavemen," she greeted dully, leaning her shoulders into the cold wall behind her.

"Morning, Bulla," Goten responded, keeping his eyes on the older halfling while he evaded a fist to the face. "I hope we didn't wake you?"

"You did actually..." she mumbled, eyes falling to the vast expanse outside the central window. She stepped over to the get a closer look. _Wow_ , she breathed, aquamarine orbs widening at the view.

"Sorry," he uttered, hopping back to dodge a hit to the side.

"Don't apologise, man," Trunks huffed, throwing another punch. "She shouldn't be sleeping the day away anyway. We're probably going to have breakfast soon, Bulla. Feel like joining us?"

"Sure," she muttered, eyes still fixed on the sights outside.

"Pretty cool, huh," Goten voiced, coming up behind her, their spar apparently over.

She wrinkled her nose and took a step away. "Yeah." The heiress pivoted on her heel and began walking back towards the suites. "Call me when the food's done. I'll be in my room."

"I was about to take a shower," Trunks said, wiping his face with a towel. "Why don't you get started and I'll join you guys in a few minutes."

Bulla hesitated, casting a brief look at her brother's friend. "I can wait," she said, hitting the button to the passage door. She heard Trunks let out a sigh.

"Bulla," he cautioned, causing her to pause. "This isn't earth, and we're not going to be waiting on you."

"I didn't think you were," she countered, spinning around to face him.

"Dude, it's fine." Goten started walking towards the heiress. "I'll whip something up."

"Don't pander to her," Trunks warned, putting out his arm to halt the younger Saiyan's movements. "I'm not interested in doing the work of two people, and you shouldn't be either. We're all working together on this." He gave a knowing look to his sister. "Right?"

"Right," she nodded.

"Good, we're all on the same page. You can help Goten with breakfast and I'll clean up."

_Ugh._

"I'll clean up," she offered. "Goten does breakfast. And you can... " Bulla tilted her head to the ceiling in thought. "Do whatever it is you do." She looked between the two older hybrids, noting the slight frown on Goten's face.

Trunks let out a snort. "Fine, whatever. Soft yolks for me, bro." He slapped the back of his hand to Goten's chest and started walking towards the doorway where Bulla currently waited. The heiress continued the five-metre trek to her room and closed the door behind her, glancing around in the hopes of finding a way to pass the time until she was called for her morning meal.

She zoned out to the sound of the shower running and was surprised to hear a knock at her door. "Yes?" she answered, turning to face it as it slid open.

"Can you give me a hand with the stove? I can't figure out how to get it going." Goten's palm was pressed to the left-hand side of her door while he stood there sheepishly.

"There's a stove?"

He let out a laugh as he turned around and hovered to the second floor. With a soft groan, she followed after him.

Goten was standing in the kitchen, looking down at what she had initially written off as a bench space, but on closer inspection, Bulla realised they were indeed staring at a black, induction stove top. _Who'da thunk?_ She shuffled along to get a bit closer, silently berating the older halfling for not reading her body cues to move out of the way. Her hands hovered over the touch-sensitive pads. _No dice_. Her head shot up suddenly and she leaned over the appliance, eyes raking over the space either side of the stove as well as the wall behind. Dropping down to her haunches, she squinted and felt around under the counter.

_*Click*_

Bulla pressed her index finger to one of the flat dials and drew an invisible circle. Immediately, an extractor fan began to buzz. "There you go," she smiled to herself, before standing up straight and turning back around. "Bye."

"Uh, thanks?" he responded. "Do you maybe want to show me what you just did, so that I can do it myself next time?"

"Oh. Right." Bulla ran her fingers through her hair before pointing to the appliance. "These are the dials for the plates." She hovered her index finger over the two faint circles. "Pretty self-explanatory. Left dial, left plate. Right dial, right plate. Go clockwise to turn up the heat, counterclockwise to go back down." She motioned her finger over the dials in demonstration. "And this." Bulla gripped the underside of the bench. "Is the main power switch. I'm guessing it turns itself off after a while - probably some safety or energy conserving feature. Just check that it's on before you start cooking."

He nodded slowly. "Got it, thanks."

"Can I…?" Bulla threw her thumb out behind her.

"Sure," he muttered as she was already walking away. "Oh, how do you like your eggs?"

"Cooked white, runny yolk," she answered, already halfway down the ladder.

"Just like your brother then."

She was practically already at her room, so didn't bother replying.

* * *

Bulla grabbed a plate and began layering it with food. _Smells delicious. And here I thought I was going to be living on packaged, reheated goop for the next four months._ Making her way to the living room, she saw that Goten had shuffled up to her brother, leaving a spot for her on the couch. She sat on the floor.

"Good move leaving Goten in charge of food," Trunks praised while Bulla rested her plate on the coffee table and began cutting into her fried eggs. "This is pretty fucking great."

"Thanks, man," Goten smiled. "Your mom's thought of everything. I swear we've got enough food and variety to last, like, two lifetimes."

"Oh shit." Trunks dropped his empty plate on the table as he hopped up suddenly. "I was meant to call her first thing this morning to let them know how things are going." Before Bulla even had a chance to watch him leave, she heard the sound of the control room door opening and closing.

_And then there were two._

"You enjoying the food, Bulla?" Goten asked with raised brows, the skin on his forehead creasing.

"S'ok," she shrugged, readjusting so that she was on her knees.

"Just okay? I need to up my game. Don't you want to sit here?" He pointed to the couch. "There's room."

"I'm fine here," she answered, keeping her eyes on the TV screen.

They continued to eat in silence until Goten finished and began clearing the plates.

"What are you doing?" Bulla asked as he reached for her own. "I'm cleaning up, remember?"

"I don't mind doing it," he answered easily.

"I'll do it," she insisted, maintaining her grip on her empty dish.

"I'm not doing anything anyway." He gave a small tug.

She wasn't letting go.

"Fine," he said, releasing it. "I'll help you then."

"I don't need help." Bulla realised it came out a bit harsher than she intended, but she wasn't willing to admit that out loud.

"I know you don't," he exhaled, glancing towards the kitchen. "But I want to."

"Why?"

"Why not?" The two halflings found themselves in an unexpected stalemate. "Are you always this difficult when people try to do you favours?" Goten frowned.

"Depends who's doing it," Bulla answered.

"I'm not looking for anything in return," he added.

_That's what they all say._

He let out an exasperated breath. "Nevermind," he uttered, showing his palms. "Trunks told me not to pander, but it looks like I couldn't help myself. Lesson learned." He strode towards the mini fridge, fetching himself a drink before descending the stairs and joining her brother in the central room.

The heiress watched as he disappeared down to the first floor, feeling a touch guilty about the scene that just played out.

_Nice going, Bulla._

* * *

"So how is everything so far?"

Bulla picked at her nail polish while she sat on the cold floor in a cross-legged position, not feeling especially engaged in the conversation at hand. "Nothing to report on really," she sighed. "There's not much to do except eat, workout and watch whatever my mom uploaded to the TV." The heiress leaned back into her palms and stared up at the ceiling. "I've been so bored. I really wish you hadn't ditched."

The remorseful face of her flatmate, and oldest friend, filled the display at the console.

"I'm sorry, B," Pan frowned. "You seem really down. I didn't expect it to be this bad."

"It's not that bad," Bulla admitted on an exhale. "I'm probably just sulking since I made an ass of myself earlier despite being barely one day in." She rolled her eyes at her own idiocy.

"What happened?" Pan queried. Bulla could see that she was fiddling around at Bulma's desk.

She considered how much she felt like reliving the earlier exchange. _Not at all_ , she decided.

"I don't want to go into it," Bulla mumbled.

"Well, whatever it is," Pan started. "You should probably apologise and put it behind you. You're going to be cooped up with those two for a while and the last thing you want is to be living in close quarters while there's bad blood. Nip it before it gets there."

"When did you start getting so sensible?" Bulla teased, feeling herself beginning to lighten up. "Any news earthside?"

"Uhm. You've been gone all of, like, one day, so I'm gonna go ahead and say, No."

"Fine, smartass," Bulla chuckled, hopping on to her feet to begin doing some stretches. "What happened after we took off? Did everyone just leave?"

Pan suddenly burst out laughing. "You totally just reminded me." She wiped a tear. "As soon as the ship left our line of sight, your dad turned to Reco and told him to fuck off."

Now Bulla was the one who couldn't contain her laughter. _Of course he did._

"Something interesting happened as I was walking to my car though," the quarterling added, scraping at some hardened epoxy near the camera.

"Yeah?" Bulla turned her head to the screen while she reached for her toes.

"Goten's girlfriend came up to me and asked if she could have my number."

"What?" the heiress giggled. "Why?"

"I dunno," Pan shrugged, blowing at the dust she'd accumulated from all the scratching. "Maybe she figured it's about time she makes more of an effort with his family or something. Or maybe she's lonely and thought I seemed cool." Pan's teeth filled the display as she grinned into the camera.

"If it's the latter then you need to pass my number on to her instead," Bulla chuckled. "Because I am definitely the cool one."

"Sorry to cut this short, but I've got a lunch date coming up and then I'm meeting Flur later tonight. Have I mentioned how handy it is having the apartment to myself?"

"Fine, go!" Bulla commanded with faux-annoyance. "Just abandon me like you always do."

"Okay, bye!" Pan waved happily. "Love you!"

"Love you too," the heiress laughed, ending the communication and removing her headset.

Bulla sat in the navigator's chair and leaned into the back with a sigh. _She's probably right about Goten, she weighed. He's been pretty polite this whole time. Obviously he realises we need to be civil towards each other if we're hoping to get through this ordeal as smoothly as possible._

She sought out his ki, as well as its proximity to her brother's. While she could possibly swallow her pride enough to acknowledge her childish behaviour to the man in question, she wasn't willing to do it in front of an audience. It seemed both demi-Saiyans were hanging out in her brother's room, so her apology would simply have to be postponed. _Oh well._

Intending on returning to her cell, Bulla opened the passage door only to be met by the sight of Goten Son standing in her brother's doorway in nothing to more than a towel. She could still see beads of water dripping off his neck and shoulders. _Obviously we have different opinions on the appropriateness of being nude in common spaces._

"Hey Bulla, can you come in here for a sec?" her brother's voice called out as she attempted to discreetly slink into her room.

"'Scuse me," she muttered while she brushed past the older Saiyan to enter Trunks' suite. Said brother was lying on his bed, one arm behind his head with a knee raised toward the ceiling.

"What's up?" she voiced casually, rocking onto the balls of her feet while she clutched her hands in front of her.

"Wanna learn how to fly?" he asked, forming a ki ball in his hands.

The heiress reared. "What are you talking about, I already know how t-" _Wait_ , she cut herself off, narrowing her eyes at her brother before twisting around to face the darkest-haired member of the trio. The two boys exchanged a glance before both looked back to the lone lady of the group. "You mean the ship…?"

"Yep."

"Uh…"

She nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt Goten rest his palm on her shoulder. "You should do it," he voiced softly. "More than one of us should know how to handle this thing in case something happens to Trunks."

"Then why don't you learn?" She shrugged his hand away.

"I will," he affirmed. "But we both agreed that you should be the first."

"Why?" she asked with furrowed brows, genuinely surprised to hear this bit of info.

"Because you're clever," he answered simply. "You'll probably pick it up faster than I will, and may well end up being pretty good at it too."

_What the hell? They said all this during my conversation with Pan? I wasn't even gone that long._

"Alright," she finally answered. "Your flattery's convinced me." She ran her hand through her hair before resting it on her hip. "When do we start?"

"Give me a few hours to do some other things first then I'll come find you," Trunks answered.

"Cool." Taking that as a sign that their chat was over, Bulla pivoted on her heel and stepped towards the exit. Goten did the same.

"Can we talk when you've got a minute?" he requested from his suite door, looking over to her while she hesitated at her own.

"Uh. Yeah, sure," she shrugged her shoulders, trying to come across more relaxed than she actually felt. "I wanted to speak with you about something anyway."

Now he was the one to look surprised, and he was much worse at hiding it. If he was even trying to. "Oh?" He waited in his doorway. "I'm free now."

She couldn't help the heat that hit her cheeks when her eyes involuntarily dropped down his still mostly naked form. "Maybe get dressed first?" she suggested.

"Right," he let out a warm chuckle. "Give me, like, five minutes."

She nodded before retreating to her cell.

* * *

"Yo." Bulla heard his voice carry from inside.

"You decent?" she asked through the panel.

"Sometimes," Goten answered. She was soon met with a familiar Son grin when he hit the button to his own door and greeted her on the other side of it. Like her brother, he didn't seem especially fond of the CC jacket, and was only wearing a black crew neck tee along with the black and orange pants. He took a step back and swept out his arm, gesturing for her to enter. She obliged, albeit with a hint of apprehension.

He sat down on the edge of his mattress while Bulla stood near the entrance, quietly taking in his private quarters. _Have I ever seen any version of his room before?_ she wondered to herself. His suite was laid out exactly like hers, as was expected. The only change he seemed to make was putting up a photo of himself with Clara on his desk. _How sweet._

"Bulla?"

"Sorry, what?" She turned her head to look at him suddenly.

"I asked who goes first, but I guess I'll start. Do you want to sit down?"

It didn't take long to suss out that the only viable spot was his bed, which he was already sitting on. "I'm good, thanks."

"Did I do something?"

"Huh?" Bulla's eyes widened at the question.

"Did I do something to upset you?"

_Okay, definitely wasn't expecting this to be the direction things went when I walked in here._

"Why would you ask that?" she frowned, tilting her head to the side.

"You've seemed kind of… Off? Lately." He was clearly choosing his words carefully. "But I feel like it's only since we got on the ship." Another pause. "Things were fine a couple weeks back when we both crashed at your parents' place, and you were fine in the hangar before take-off, but as soon as we walked through the door you suddenly got all…" he hesitated. "Cold."

She didn't say anything as she digested his answer, chewing the inside of her lip while she considered her own response.

"I realise that sounds sort of ridiculous when we acknowledge whose daughter you are," he added with a soft smile, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. "Some level of coldness is to be expected."

She let out a snort. _Bulla the ice-queen. Yep, heard that one before._

Running her fingers through her hair, Bulla exhaled. "You didn't do anything wrong. I'm just being a stubborn bitch."

"That's not what I said," he interjected, pushing himself up.

"Well, it's true." She wandered over to his desk and leaned her rear against it, absently grabbing the lone photo frame while she continued to form her next sentence. "Look, I'm sorry. You've been pretty patient, offering to help and all." _This is a really cute photo, I wonder how long ago it was taken?_ "I know that we'll have to make an effort to get along and I'm not exactly doing my part."

That statement made him rear his head. "Wait, do we not get along usually? Since when? Is this about Reco?"

"What? What does Reco have to do with anything?" She looked up from the photo in confusion.

"Nothing, nevermind. Why do you think we don't get along?"

"I think we get along just fine," she clarified. "It's just..."

_Goddamnit, I can feel myself going red!_

"What?" he asked innocently.

"This is weird okay!" she finally exclaimed, extending her arms and placing the frame back down before she broke his precious piece of memorabilia.

"What's weird?"

A knock came from Goten's door before it slid open. Both halflings turned their heads to see her brother standing at the threshold with a perplexed expression, gaze floating from Bulla to Goten and back to Bulla.

All three remained where they stood, no one saying a word, like some kind of Mexican standoff.

"Uh," Trunks stalled, finally breaking the silence. "What's going on?"

"Bulla and I are having a chat," Goten answered, remarkably easily.

That didn't seem to be enough. "About what?" he pressed. "And why are you blushing?" he directed towards his sister.

"I'm not blushing." She wiped her palms over her face and pushed away from the table. "Good talk, Goten." Bulla gave a thumbs up as she bee-lined for the exit and slithered past her brother to salvage what little dignity she had left.

"Where are you going?" She bumped into Trunks' arm as he threw it out to interrupt her escape. "I only came here to ask if you wanted to start learning how to pilot."

"I thought you had other stuff to do first?" Bulla asked over her shoulder.

"Changed my mind, that shit can wait," he shrugged. "You two ready? Goten may as well watch too so that he's primed when it's his turn."

The heiress turned to face the dark-haired hybrid. He was looking back at her, seemingly waiting for her okay. "Yep. Two birds and all that," she nodded.

"Goten?"

"Let's do it." He stood up tall, flicking his light switch as he joined them in the doorway.

* * *

"First things first," Trunks began, standing with folded arms at the main console. "As you've probably already figured out, this thing basically flies itself. Once you plug in the coordinates here." He pointed to one of the touchscreens. "The computer will map its own effective flight path and handle most of the journey on its own."

_Noted._

"But _occasionally_ we'll need to override the self-driving mechanic to make more intricate movements," he added.

"Like when?" Bulla queried, slipping off her jacket and dropping it on the seat behind her.

"Like when it picks up something unexpected on its route," he answered. "It's constantly receiving information about our surroundings, so we'll have enough warning to get in here and take control. Depending on the planet we're approaching, we may also need to land manually. Some won't have designated landing pads for the ship to lock on to. In those instances, we'll zoom in on the digital map, select a spot that seems safe and land the old-fashioned way."

"So dodging asteroids, debris and unregistered planets and for safe landing?" Bulla summarised. "Got it."

"Basically," Trunks nodded.

"What about encountering other ships?" Goten enquired from Bulla's left.

"Incredibly unlikely," the oldest hybrid answered. "But on the rare chance we do come across someone else." He pointed to a button marked with the letter 'S'. "Pressing this will cloak the vessel and allow us to avoid intergalactic warfare. It burns through resources though, so we can't have it running twenty-four seven.

Now that that's out of the way, let's get started, shall we?" He looked over to his sister and gestured towards the front-most chair. "This is where you'll navigate from. Hit this button to bring up the controls."

Bulla got herself comfortable and pressed said button on the arm of her seat. In an instant, a few tiles at her feet opened up and a collection of long-stemmed screens appeared around her as well as a two-pronged steering wheel. In addition, something akin to binoculars lowered from the ceiling. _Ah, I see what's going on here._

"Th-"

"Don't tell me," she interrupted, pressing her face to the eye-piece. "This allows me to see what's going on around the ship more easily." She gripped each handle of the steering wheel. "This allows me to manoeuvre the ship like a ballerina. And these." She pulled her head back and pointed to the surrounding computers. "Will give me some condensed info on the vitals of the ship as well as some other functions like the cloaking."

Both boys had their arms folded while they watched her at the helm. Trunks was smirking at her before he shifted his gaze to Goten.

"Told you," the dark-haired demi-Saiyan grinned.

"I knew she'd be a fast learner," Trunks conceded, loosening his arms and turning his palms to the ceiling. "But fuck." He swept his fingers through his lavender locks. "Alright, press this to initiate the manual override." He pointed at a flashing green button on the right-most console. "And off you go. May as well get some practice in."

The two older hybrids strode towards the passageway, muttering to each other about something she wasn't particularly interested eavesdropping on. _I'm flying a fucking spaceship_ , she beamed as she gently tilted the steering wheel towards her stomach.

* * *

"Hungry?" her brother's voice pulled her out of her zone.

Bulla turned off the manual override and disengaged that navigator consoles. "Sure," she answered, reaching for her jacket.

"Nice going, Bulla," Trunks praised, following behind her as she made her way to the loft. "Goten and I sort of had a bet going on how quickly you'd figure out the system. I said thirty minutes."

"What do you win?" she smirked, floating up past the stairs.

"Nothing," he answered. "I lost. Goten said fifteen."

"Oh."

 _The man can cook,_ she discreetly inhaled as she approached the kitchen. _I should tell him... eventually._

* * *

Bulla was leaning her cheek against her brother's shoulder - belly full, lids heavy. The three halflings had just finished their surprisingly satisfying dinner and were relaxing on the couch in front of the TV - one of the very few forms of entertainment available to them to help pass the time. This was only their second night in aboard the ship, and they still had another twenty or so to go before they'd be touching down on anything resembling dirt.

_Next time, I'm bringing a goddamn library with me._

"I better start cleaning up," Trunks muttered to no one in particular. He pulled out the cushion he'd been lying against and offered it to Bulla as a substitute. Grabbing the three empty plates in front of him, he wandered over to the kitchen.

The heiress pressed her face to the back of the sofa, noting in her peripheral vision that Goten was looking at her from the other end of the couch. "Uh-oh, the Trunks buffer is gone. Time to run away, Bulla," he jested.

She ignored him, simply keeping her gaze ahead.

"Nice work handling the ship earlier," he added, returning his attention to the TV. "Trunks said he's never seen such natural piloting before, even at the corporation with all those experienced flight testers."

Really?

"Thanks," she responded, trying to sound sincere. "Nice dinner."

He turned back. She could see him smiling that stupid Son grin in her direction.


	4. Team Bonding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I messed up last chapter and only had the first half submitted for a while. I'm putting a note here just in case you were one of the unlucky few who read the incomplete submission. Do you remember Bulla flying the ship? Or going into Goten's room? If not, please reread the last chapter. I know, my bad.

"Can you hurry up? I really need to pee," Bulla whined, leaning her forehead against the bathroom door. The panel slid open and Goten stood on the other side, clutching his towel at his waist. "Ace rinsing," she commented sarcastically when he stepped past her. Bulla glided her fingertips across his shoulder and wiped the foamy goop onto his towel before walking through the door and closing it behind her. The three half-Saiyans were seven days into their journey and followed more or less the same routine each day: wake-up, spar, shower, breakfast, Bulla would practice manually flying the ship for a bit, lunch, one or two of them would call home and speak with a respective girlfriend, boyfriend or other loved one, die of boredom, dinner, veg out, sleep, repeat. In no particular order.

The lights on the ship were programmed to dim and brighten according to earth's circadian rhythms, the heiress had discovered, so maintaining their sleep cycles was easier than she had been expecting.

"What?" Bulla called out when she heard a knock, popping the cap on her toothpaste.

"Can I come in?" Goten voiced from the other side. "I didn't have enough time to brush my teeth so I may as well join you. Trunks wants us doing stuff in batches anyway."

Bulla hit the release and he joined her at the basin, still damp and wearing nothing more than his black utility pants. She faintly turned on the tap and both plunged their bristles under the weak stream. The heiress bumped the older hybrid with her hip when he playfully knocked her brush out of the way. She narrowed her eyes at him in warning before placing her toothbrush in her mouth. Goten let out a chuckle, grinning at her while he proceeded to innocently clean his own pearly whites. When one spat, the other did the same, both watching as the green foam swirled down the drain. Bulla opened the tap once more to catch the last of their combined spit and wiped her mouth with her hand.

"It's kind of unfair that you get to walk around topless while I have to ensure I'm decent basically all hours of the day," she voiced, inspecting her pores in the mirror.

"I don't care if you want to walk around without a shirt on," he shrugged, pulling her arm away when she began poking at a blackhead on her chin.

"I do," Trunks spoke from the doorway, causing both hybrids to turn their heads. "Good to see you two spending some quality time together for a change. Maybe I'll join you next time and we can have some team bonding over hygiene."

"Someone needs to keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't keep picking at her skin." Goten grabbed her wrist when she returned her fingers to her face, this time hoping to pop a particularly stubborn one on her forehead. She simply pouted at him.

"Anyway," Trunks continued. "I just came here to tell you Reco's on the line." He pushed himself up from the doorframe and turned around to leave.

Goten released his grip and she stepped around him to exit the bathroom. Marching over to the control room, she picked up the headset and sat down.

"Hey you," she smiled. "You're at my parents' place pretty early."

"Hey, beautiful." He grinned his charming grin back at her. "What can I say? I wanted to see you as soon as I woke up this morning. How's it going up there?"

"Alright, I guess," she answered dully, fingering the tips of her aquamarine tresses. "I've got a massive craving for waffles though. How was Bison's party?"

"Absolutely wild." He ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm pretty sure I had an out of body experience."

Bulla let out a snort.  _Trust Reco._

"Would've been even better if you were there with me though," he added. "It's not the same without you, babe."

"Aw," she giggled. "Well, make sure you have some energy in reserve for when I get back. I think I'm gonna go on, like,  _at least_  a two-week bender if these past few days are anything to go by. I'm pretty sure we don't even have alcohol on this thing." She glanced around, hoping to spot some secret cabinet or hidden stash.

"Probably for the best, right?" he offered. "Piloting that thing drunk doesn't seem like a good idea. Plus, I don't want Goten getting too cozy with you."

 _This again?_ She decided to let the comment go.

"How are things going with him, by the way?" he asked.

"With Goten? Fine, I guess," she answered, unsure what exactly he was looking for. "I said it before - it's like being around another brother." While that wasn't entirely true at the start, she could definitely feel herself becoming more comfortable as time went on.

At that moment the control room door opened, causing her to remove her headphones. Goten walked in, still topless, and stopped at her chair. "What's up?" she asked, keeping her voice low while she looked up at him.

"Sorry to interrupt," he said, glancing at the video display momentarily. He offered a wave to the younger man. "Have you seen the diagnostics tablet around? Trunks said he saw it with you last."

"Oh. Yeah, it's on my bed," she affirmed. "You can go in and get it if you need it now."

He gave a nod, pausing mid-turn. "Oh, you've got some-" Goten tapped the side of his mouth.

Bulla rubbed her finger over the corresponding area. "Did I get it?"

"I'll do it." He got down on his haunches and leaned his face towards her own, inadvertently blocking the camera with the back of his head. Licking the tip of his thumb, Goten wiped the corner of her mouth, stood up and retreated to their private quarters.

Bulla placed the headset back on and returned her attention to her beau. "Sorry about that," she voiced easily. "What were we talking about again?"

He was staring at her, gobsmacked. Mouth partially open.

"What?" she asked innocently.

"Did that mother fucker just kiss you right in front of me?"

"What?" Bulla chortled. "No, I had something on my face and he got it off."

"With his mouth?!"

Despite seeing how flabbergasted he was, Bulla couldn't suppress the hilarity at the idea. She clutched her belly as she began to laugh out loud, tears forming in her eyes. "Oh my God…" she uttered. "Imagine."

He seemed to lighten up on observing her amusement. "I'm guessing if people typically walk in unannounced then there's not much chance of me seeing what you've got on under that jacket?"

"Reco!" she scolded, still giggling.

"What?" he frowned. "I miss you."

 _Boys and their silly feelings,_ she rolled her eyes.  _Ooo, a lollipop!_

* * *

"I forgot how hard you hit," Trunks breathed as he barely managed to dodge a fist to the jaw. Bulla ducked when a toned leg rapidly approached her head. She swept her foot under his own and, in a heartbeat, he was on his back. The heiress stood over her fallen adversary proudly, her smile so smug it gave Vegeta's a run for its money. "Nice one," he exhaled, resting the back of his head on the cool floor.

"You know," Bulla began after a taking a deep breath. "Two whole weeks without paparazzi has been pretty sweet. I could get used to this." She got down on the floor with her brother, crossing her legs.

"Tell me about it," he grunted, readjusting his position, apparently making himself more comfortable. "Now I know where to go when I truly want privacy."

"You always want privacy though," she teased, poking him in the calf. "I'd never see you if you were always in space."

He simply shrugged.

 _Is he ever going to talk about what happened with Melody_? she wondered, watching him softly when the communicator suddenly started chiming. "I'll get it," she offered, pushing herself up.

"Princess Bulla," the heiress greeted perkily, falling into the navigator's seat and hugging her legs to her chest while she waited for the video display to sync. "Now also answering to Captain Bulla and Leader of the Boy Saiyans."

"What's a Saiyans? And would Goten happen to be one of these boys you're apparently leading?"

"Oh my God," Bulla blanched as she turned to face her brother. "Hi, Clara!" Trunks looked up on hearing who was on the other side and snorted at his sister's fumble. "Sorry, I thought it was my mom. Or my dad. Or my boyfriend. Or Pan. How are you? How's everything on earth?"

The redhead gave her a wary look. "Uhm. Okay, I guess?"

"How did your audition go?" Bulla kept layering the questions, hoping to bury her earlier slip.

"How… do you know about that?"

"Goten told us, silly," Bulla smiled. "He says you're super close to getting your big break."

"He said that?"  _Getting warmer..._ From what Bulla could see, her face seemed to be softening. "He talks about me while he's up there?"

"Of course he does! All the time!"  _Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration._

That seemed to hit the spot, however, as the aspiring actress finally broke into a grin. "The audition went really well. I'm one of three who are currently in the running, and I think I've got a shot of landing this one," she bubbled.

"Heck yeah you do. I've seen your roles and you've got this in the bag."

"You think so?" Clara's eyes began to twinkle. "Goten's been paying for acting classes so I can polish up. I think they're really working, too! My instructor says I've totally got the X-factor."

Bulla felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see a perplexed looking Goten. "Oh, looks like your other half is here," she said, returning her attention to the camera. "You'll have to fill me in properly some other time. We should hang out when I get back!" the heiress suggested enthusiastically.

"I'd like that," Clara responded, giving a jovial wave. "Bye, Bulla!"

She slipped the headset off and passed it to her fellow halfling with a wink. Placing it over his ears, he gave the heiress one last sceptical glance before speaking into the mic.

"Hey, babe."

* * *

"I want more," Bulla moaned, stretching herself across the sofa, her head on her brother's lap while her feet rested over the tops of Goten's thighs. "But I might explode."

The younger of the two men turned to look at her, a big grin adorning his boyish face. "Thanks, Bulla."

"Don't let it go to your head." She threw the crook of her elbow over eyes. "I'm just being greedy."

"Nope." He shook his head. "That Vegeta mask doesn't work on me anymore. Two and a half weeks in, I'm beginning to see through you."

"What are you on about..." she muttered, keeping her lids closed. "Idiot."

"Hey!" Trunks shoved her shoulder while Goten let out a chuckle. "Be nice."

_Whatever. I am nice._

"Ah!" She suddenly found herself on the floor when both boys stood up simultaneously. "You bastards!" she yelled, rubbing her hand over her hip, only causing them to laugh harder.

"That's what you get for being a brat," Trunks chastised. "Don't forget that you're outnumbered here."

"Trust me," she groaned, grimacing as she pushed herself up. "I'm constantly aware of it. And I take back what I said earlier - you're both idiots."

"Okay, I admit." Goten offered a hand to the heiress which she smacked away. "That was kind of mean."

"No, it wasn't," Trunks argued, clearing the plates before making his way to the kitchen. "She needs to be knocked down every now and then, otherwise she'll have us wrapped around her little finger, trust me."

"That is so not true," she huffed, folding her arms. "I don't manipulate people."

"Bulla." Trunks dumped the dishes on the bench and returned to the sulking princess, wrapping his arms around her. "You're my sister, which means I probably have to love you as you are."

She rolled her eyes.  _Here we go._

"But you're the queen of emotional warfare. You brought dad to his knees before you could even talk - I mean it when I say no one stands a chance against you."

With a groan, she attempted to push him away, only to have him squeeze her tighter. "Aw, Trunks." She decided to change tactics. "I love you too." Without warning, she began attacking him with smooches. He couldn't let go fast enough. Goten was watching with folded arms, clearly entertained by the antics between the two siblings. "Come on, Goten," she called, grabbing hold of her brother before he could make his escape. "Team hug!" He came up behind her, enveloping both Briefs in his strong Son arms.

"What a picture," Bulla giggled. "Where's the camera? We need this one for the family album."

She erupted in laughter when Goten began tightening his hold, much to Trunks' protests. The heiress slipped out from between them and the dark-haired halfling hooked her brother in for a choke hold. The oldest hybrid grabbed Goten by the waist, beginning to push into him with his shoulder. "That's how you wanna play it, huh Son?"

"I have to give you some shit occasionally," Goten chuckled. "We can't go teaming up against your sister all the time. She's going to start taking revenge and I don't want to see what that looks like."

"Damn right!" she affirmed, watching the two boys in amusement.

Trunks rammed the younger fighter into the sofa suddenly and proceeded to hammer into his stomach, causing him Goten to launch into his own laughing fit while he jerked his legs and attempted to grab Trunks' fists. "Ah, bro! I just ate!"

"Should've thought about that before you decided to take me on then, shouldn't you?" he jabbed, ducking his head to dodge an incoming punch.

Having spent enough time merely watching from the sidelines, Bulla jumped on to her brother's back, grinning ear to ear. "Free for all!"

Trunks hopped up from his original target and spun around while she hung on for dear life, head thrown back as she cackled at the ceiling. She loosened her arms and dropped back to the floor, pressing her palm to her forehead while she attempted to find her balance.

In a flash, Trunks was on his back as Goten returned the favour and launched himself at the prince, laying into his midsection while he straddled him

Bulla began whacking a sofa cushion into the back of Goten's head, giggling every time he missed an attempt to swipe at her with his left hand.

"Okay, that's it." He rose from the floor and reached out to grab her. She was a touch too slow and ended up with an arm wrapped around her thigh as she tried to make her getaway. "Now, what am I doing with you?" he taunted, lifting her off the ground, throwing her over his shoulder and carrying her towards the ladder as she squirmed and beat against his back, laughing uncontrollably.

"Cold shower, I say," Trunks called out, leaning over the loft edge while the two younger halflings made their way towards the bathroom.

* * *

In an uncharacteristic move, Bulla found herself outside Goten's door on the nineteenth night, fist hovering over the metal-alloy panel while she weighed up how good of an idea it was to disturb him. It was late, and her brother was already asleep, but from the movement she heard through their shared wall, it seemed the younger of her two shipmates was still up.

_Fuck it._

She gave a few soft knocks, soon hearing shuffling on the other side. The door slid open, revealing a cautious looking Son. "What's up?"

"Were you about to get into bed?" Bulla asked, noting that he was wearing nothing more than a pair of loose shorts.

"I was just reading. Is something wrong?"

"No, everything's fine." She shook her head. "But I can't sleep. I was wondering if you felt like hanging out for a while."  _Yeah, I know,_  she thought to herself when he gave her a look. The heiress was aware of the fact she hadn't exactly been the most  _sociable_ crew member initially, but now that she was more or less over her initial apprehension of being the only girl having to share space with the two men, she found herself opening up.

He slipped out of his suite and followed her into the main control room.

"I found something while I was piloting the other day," she said, leaving the lights off as she wandered over to the central console. He came up behind her and watched while she tapped at one of the touchscreens, white light reflecting off her skin. A two-dimensional floor plan of their ship appeared and she pressed the image of the room they were currently standing in. Gradually she felt herself beginning to rise and turned back to grin at her fellow hybrid.

"What's happening?" He was looking at his hands as they floated towards the ceiling.

"Apparently we can control the gravity locally," she smiled. "I've turned off the simulator for just this room." Within a few seconds, both demi-Saiyans were hovering above the ground, rotating carefully as they became accustomed to the new sensation. "It feels weird, doesn't it? Nothing like flying."

"Yeah," he whispered, doing a lazy somersault.

Bulla drifted on to her back, observing her loose aquamarine strands licking at her white t-shirt. She closed her eyes and let out a long breath.  _I don't know if I've ever felt this relaxed before - and I didn't even need to smoke something first._ Unthinkingly, she began to hum to herself.

"That's one of Melody's songs, isn't it?" Goten spoke up, pulling her out of her moment. She had already forgotten that he was here.

"Oh, you're right," she grimaced.  _Better not make that mistake around Trunks._

Silence filled the room once more.  _I wonder if he knows any more about those two than the rest of us do?_

"I've been meaning to thank you for being so great with Clara the other day," Goten said, causing the heiress to open her eyes.

"No big deal," she shrugged.

"I mean it. That was really big of you. I know what she can be like, especially with you."

"What are you trying to say?" she teased. "Do you mean to tell me that the love of your life  _isn't_  my number one fan? I never would have guessed." Bulla closed her eyes once more, but she could still feel him staring at her.

"Even after all these years, you continue to surprise me."

He didn't elaborate, and she had too much pride to ask him to.

"Clar doesn't have the best track record with other women," he added, throwing a slow punch. "She's so used to competing against them for a shot at her dream, and having the rug pulled out from under her by people she thought were friends."

"Hence the trust issues?" Bulla voiced sympathetically, turning back to look at him.

"You have no idea…" he muttered. "She just about lost her mind when she came across those photos of me and you on the cover of that stupid tabloid from a few weeks ago."

"Oh my God, you saw those too?" she shuddered, throwing her hands to her face. "Kill me now."

"I didn't actually," he laughed. "I never look at that trash, but I  _definitely_  heard about it." He let out a breath. "Apparently the two of us are an item now?" He raised an eyebrow at the heiress.

"Don't remind me," she grumbled, shifting to take more of an upright position so she could cross her legs mid-air. "The stuff they wrote about both of us almost made me wretch."

"How does Reco take that sort of thing?" He floated towards the edge of the room and kicked off lightly, sending himself careening towards the younger fighter.

"He's not usually the jealous type," she sighed, running her fingers through her hair. "But I admit even  _he_ has been sort of weird about this trip." Goten gripped her arm as he sailed past her, pulling her along with him.

"Is it serious with him?" he asked, causing her to cock her head.

"What?" She stifled a chuckle. They were both on their backs now, almost making a single line with their bodies - heads meeting in the middle, feet at each outer end. "What does that even mean?"

"Do you think you think you'll end up with him eventually?" he clarified.

At this, she laughed out loud - partially at the uncharacteristically personal question, but mostly at the idea he was posing.

"Reco? I don't think so," she sniggered. "If that's what serious means, then no, we're not serious." Bulla almost thought she saw something akin to relief washing over him, but quickly thought better of it. "What about you? Do you want to marry miss future actress?"

He was quiet for longer than she was expecting, causing her to roll her head and watch him more carefully. He was staring at the ceiling. "Goten?"

"Maybe," he finally answered. "I mean yes... probably."

"A man of conviction, I see," she laughed once again and saw him crack a smile.

"I have to be careful what I say to you now that you two are tight," he grinned, turning his head to meet her gaze.

Bulla let out a snort, before pressing her palms into his shoulder and pushing him away. "You know I'd never throw you under the bus like that. Despite my opinions of you guys sometimes, I'm still loyal to House Son."

He gripped her forearm with both hands as he drifted towards the perimeter. "Gee, Bulla. Who knew you could actually be sentimental," he jested, coming to a stop against the wall and wrapping his fingers around an exposed pipe. Bulla did the same.

"What makes you so doubtful about her?" she asked quietly, watching his expression to see if she'd crossed the invisible boundary that was their rather impersonal relationship.

Simultaneously, both hybrids kicked off and rocketed towards the other side of the room. "Trunks," was all he said.

"Trunks?" Bulla reared. "Don't go getting advice from him right now, Goten. He's obviously not in the best headspace to be talking about relationships."

"No, not like that." He shook his head, pressing his fingertips into the opposite wall as he approached it.

"Then what do you mean?" she frowned.

"Seeing how heartbroken he was after his break up with Melody..." he hesitated, looking over to the younger halfling. "I've started to wonder how I would feel if things ended with Clara."

She raised an eyebrow. "And?"

"It would suck, sure," he took in a deep breath. "but I think I'd feel kind of... relieved, too?"

_Whoa._

She couldn't help her shocked expression as her eyes widened at the unexpected confession.

"That's bad, right?" he grimaced.

"No, it's not bad," she answered quickly. "You and Trunks are different people. He's… intense. You're." The way he was looking at her right now pulled at her heartstrings.  _He looks like such a little boy. In over his own head, and no idea what to do._  "You two are just different, okay? If you didn't think she was worth spending your time with, you would have ended it by now. Surely. You're obviously getting  _something_ out of being with her, right?"

More silence.

"We should probably get to sleep," he finally responded. "Captain Trunks doesn't want any slackers amongst his crew."

"Give me a boost." Bulla gripped Goten's shoulder and launched off his chest, bee-lining for the console. After turning the gravity back on, both halflings dropped to the ground and headed for the passageway.

As each stood outside their suite doors, Bulla turned and offered a soft smile.

"Goodnight Goten."

He gave a nod. "Night Bulla."


	5. Bulla the Devil

Bulla gasped as she pushed into her hands and sat up in her cot. Before she even knew what she was doing, she felt her right fist connect with squishy skin covering hard bone.

"Fucking hell!" she heard a male voice exclaim. Quickly flicking on her lamp, she found Goten crouching near her bed while he clutched the side of his face. "Nice reflexes," he groaned.

"What are you doing in my room?" she cut right to the chase, her heart still racing. In the twenty days since their journey began, she couldn't recall him once setting foot in her sanctuary, outside of grabbing the tablet a few weeks before.  _Or has he been sneaking in here each night, and I haven't noticed all this time?_

She was up and out of bed in a flash, fist clenched in his collar while she had him rammed against her closet. "Explain yourself."

"Bulla, relax." He gently gripped her wrist. "Trunks asked me to come and get you. You didn't respond when I knocked so I came in to wake you up." She felt her cheeks warm when she saw his own redden after dropping his gaze from her eyes to the rest of her body and back up hastily. "Sorry, I didn't think about the fact that you probably don't sleep fully tacked." Bulla released her hold on his t-shirt and threw on the pair of pants she carelessly discarded the previous night. After zipping up her jacket, she spoke once more.

"Why did Trunks tell to you to wake me up?" she exhaled, feeling herself slowly come down from the adrenaline rush.

He readjusted his tee along his shoulders and flattened his collar. "He's in the control room getting us ready for landing," he explained. "Everyone needs to be strapped in."

"Oh." She felt a bit bad now, socking him like that and suspecting him of being a pervert when all he was doing was playing messenger. She pressed her fingertips to the side of his face, near his temple, where her fist first connected. He flinched but remained where he stood while he watched her cautiously. Standing on the tips of her toes to get a closer look, she spoke, "That's gonna leave a nasty bruise, sorry." The heiress was in the middle of grazing her thumb over his cheekbone when the ship suddenly lurched, sending her crashing into the older demi-Saiyan. She knocked against his chest and felt him quickly grab hold of her waist.

"Trunks mentioned things might get a bit bumpy as we approach Bhander," he muttered, slowly dropping his hand once they both found stronger footing.

"We better bolt ourselves down then," she responded, pushing herself away and heading for the exit.

"What happened to  _you_?" Trunks sniggered, looking over his shoulder while he was bent at the console. Bulla had already found herself a seat and was in the process of doing up her belts.

"Nothing," Goten murmured, choosing the chair adjacent to her own.

"Goten learned a valuable lesson about why boys shouldn't sneak into girls' rooms in the middle of the night, didn't you Goten?" she teased. Now that she was over the initial shock, she was rather amused by the situation. It served as a good warning to both men as to what could be expected if they ever thought about snooping around her room uninvited.

"I learned that next time we need to land, it's better to just let you roll loosely around your suite," he scowled as he lightly pressed his fingers to the rapidly growing bruise near his eye.

"You are such a baby." She folded her arms - not even an ounce of sympathy.

"And you hit harder than my dad," he retorted.

"I probably should have warned you about that," Trunks chuckled, finally strapping himself in while he turned back to look at his fellow hybrid. "Sorry, bro."

* * *

Goten was the first to exit the ship once the probe confirmed atmosphere and radiation levels were safe. He bent down and grabbed a handful of red sand. "Man it feels good to touch hard ground," he breathed as he let the grains fall, a strong wind carrying the dust a good few metres away. Trunks encapsulated the ship and popped the precious pod inside his internal jacket pocket while Bulla battled with her hair as it flew all directions across her face.

_Where the heck are we?_ she wondered silently, taking in her new surroundings.  _Sand dunes as far as the eye can see._   _Who are we meant to be buying the stuff from?_

"It looks like the urban settlement is this way," Trunks spoke, pointing Northwest of their current location while he stared at his handheld tablet. "We want to maintain a low profile throughout this trip so we'll fly to the outskirts and then walk the rest of the way to avoid attracting any attention. Keep your ki low."

"Got it," Bulla answered, finishing her French braid. Goten simply nodded. The three half-Saiyans took to the sky with the heiress staying close to her brother's left while he led the way to their first stop.

"I think I see something," Goten called out after fifteen or so minutes, squinting while he held his forearm out in front of his face.

"Thank God," Bulla murmured. "I've been flying with my eyes closed this whole time thanks to this stupid sandstorm."

The three half-Saiyans touched down one after the other, Bulla eternally grateful that her jacket zipped all the way up to her mouth.  _Man, getting this sand out of my hair is going to be a pain later._ Keeping her lids shut, she forged ahead, feeling her brother's arm behind her back as he guided her forward.

Before long they reached a collection of mounds, some going two and three storeys high, though most were only one floor.

"I'm guessing this is the settlement," Bulla said, dragging her fingertips over the sandstone wall of one of the dwellings. "But where is everyone? The sun is out, so it's surely daytime, right?"

In an instant, the sandstorm died down, much to all three's surprise. They looked to each other before surveying the rest of the surroundings. Slowly, the city came to life as shutters were thrown open, bells rang and murmurs began to carry. A few faces popped up in a nearby window giving the heiress a start. Instinctively, she took a step closer to her brother.

"Hello," Goten greeted them, extending his hand. Both strangers gazed down at his palm suspiciously, before looking to Bulla. They muttered something to each other and shut their window.

_Uh, okay?_

"I don't think they like you, Goten," she snickered, clutching Trunks' arm while they made their way to the next building.

"Nuh-uh." He shook his head, falling in stride with the two Briefs. "The last thing they did before closing up shop was look at  _you._ "

_I bet I know why,_  she thought smugly, flicking out her braid.

"Let's try those stalls," Trunks suggested, pointing ahead to what looked to be some kind of flea market. Once they reached the first merchant, Bulla spoke up.

"Let me, boys. This needs a woman's charm."

She sauntered over and leaned her elbows on his table. He looked at her sceptically, taking a small step back.

"Hello," she grinned, batting her lashes. "I'm in need of some help. Do you speak the standard tongue?"

He answered by slamming his shutter, causing both boys to burst out laughing. She threw them a middle finger before returning with folded arms. "Obviously we're on the wrong planet. People here don't know the first thing about taste."

"Maybe they're wary of foreigners," Goten managed to get out, wiping away a tear.

"You might be onto something," Trunks agreed, pinching Bulla's sleeve. "We don't exactly blend in." The three travellers took a moment to assess their apparel in comparison to what they'd seen so far. Apart from being a different species, Bulla, Trunks and Goten were all wearing their CC issue gear - black and orange everything from tip to toe. The heiress considered how out of place they probably looked to locals, who seemed to be bundled up exclusively in neutral toned robes and rags. Even their heads were covered, only allowing their faces to be exposed.  _I bet it works really well with the crazy sandstorms if what we just came through is anything to go by._

"Maybe it's worth getting a change of clothes?" Bulla put forward. "We're not really getting anywhere as it stands."

"Let's try one more," Trunks responded, approaching the next stall. "I'll do the talking this time."

"Hi," he said, offering the merchant a genial smile. For the third time, the store owner gave a nervous look to the heiress. Goten pulled her behind him, which seemed to give the vendor a bit more comfort, as he looked back to the oldest halfling and gave a nod.

"Okay, I was just joking earlier," Goten muttered to her. "But I think you really are making these people uncomfortable." He gripped her wrist and lead her back a few feet.

"What?!" she exclaimed, causing Trunks and the merchant to look up at her simultaneously. She saw him point at her and her brother did the same before showing his palms in some sort of appeasing gesture.

"C'mon." Goten continued to retreat, dragging Bulla with him. "Trunks is actually getting somewhere. Let's not interfere."

"This is ridiculous!" she whined, folding her arms in a huff. "They should be seeing me as some exotic beauty or something."

Trunks came up behind her. "Kind of the opposite," he chuckled. "Apparently there's some folklore around here about a blue-haired devil that pretends to be human by day and steals people out of their beds come nightfall."

Bulla gasped as both boys began laughing once more. "Oh my god!" she erupted. "They think I'm a devil?"

"This is too good." Goten clutched his stomach.

"So yeah..." Trunks inhaled after getting through his laughing fit. "Your suggestion about getting new clothes probably wasn't a bad one. One of us will have to do the talking." He looked to Goten while he wiped his palm over his stubble. "He told me about an information centre nearby where we can get a better idea of how to find what we're looking for. We need fuel, water, a laundromat and somewhere to crash."

"We'll be staying here?" Bulla paused her sulking to satisfy her curiosity at hearing the last item.

"Well, sure," he shrugged, as if it should've been obvious. "There's a lot to do. We'll probably need a few days at least _._ "

"Oh." She loosened her arms and trailed behind her travel companions as they proceeded to follow the vendor's directions. "Hey look!" She pointed ahead. "A clothes stall."

She made sure to keep her distance this time as Trunks and Goten organised some new threads for the trio.  _There's probably little chance of those two getting my sizing right. If there even are sizes to choose from?_

"One change of clothes for our resident devil," Goten grinned, passing her a canvas bag. She gave him a look before peeking inside. "Hmm, beige? Doesn't really go with my hai-" She looked up. "Nevermind."

"We need to find somewhere to change," Trunks muttered to himself, glancing around. "Oh there." He pointed to an alleyway and immediately began walking toward it.

Once they were under cover, the two men wasted no time stripping off their bottoms and jackets, thinking nothing of undressing in front of the lone female. She found herself blushing as she involuntarily caught a glimpse of Goten in his black t-shirt and undies.

"Bulla, c'mon," Trunks urged, throwing the first layer over his shoulders. "No one can see us."

_Yeah, fine._  She unzipped her jacket and folded it carefully before unbuttoning her pants, closing her eyes as she quickly pulled them down and grabbed her beige 'dress'. It fully covered her arms and went down to the ground, but she had to admit that the material left her feeling very cool and well ventilated.  _Breezy._ Trunks and Goten opted to skip the headscarves, but she didn't exactly have that option. Wrapping it over her hair and letting the excess rest on her shoulders, she joined the other two in the street.

"Pretty," Goten commented.

"Shut up." She bumped his shoulder as she stomped past him.

"I was being serious?" he said from behind her.

"So where's this info kiosk?" she sighed, yanking their clothes from their hands and shoving it into her new canvas bag.

"This way," Trunks answered, walking ahead. Bulla couldn't help giggling to herself as she watched them.  _They look like religious Brothers. The two least pious idiots in West City._

* * *

"How much for three rooms?" Trunks asked, slipping his hand into his pocket while he scratched around for his card.

"One night? Three thousand," the seemingly bored receptionist answered, barely willing to look away from his miniature TV.

"Alright, we'll take them." Trunks waved his card over a little machine on the desk before it let out a beep. After receiving their keys, the three half-Saiyans climbed the outside stairwell to their second-storey rooms.

Once she removed her headscarf, Bulla threw herself onto her mattress and let out a breath.  _Who knew a double bed could be such a luxury._ She rolled her head towards her sliding door and hopped up, pushing it open. Pressing into the balcony rails, she took in a deep breath. It was now evening in this little corner of Planet Bhander and the air was cool and refreshing. The bustle had slowed and she could smell enticing odours wafting from the various restaurants below. They hadn't eaten all that much since landing, she realised. They were so caught up in trying to find the correct district for their needs and securing a place to sleep before everyone closed up shop.

It took them a couple of hours, but they managed to suss out temporary residence in the technology sector and the pamphlet said there was a laundry facility at their motel.  _Now we just need to find out where we can buy fuel and water._

Bulla looked to her left when she heard a second set of sliding doors glide open. "Hey neighbour," she smiled. Goten smiled back, gripping his railing. "It's good to breathe in fresh air again isn't it?"

She heard a knock at her door and bounced over, finding her brother on the other side. "Do you wanna grab some food?" he asked. "Everything else is closed so we may as well give ourselves the rest of the night off."

Bulla beamed back at him. "Such a generous boss you are! Can I get cleaned up first? I feel kind of sticky."

"Yeah, alright. Meet you downstairs in twenty minutes."

* * *

"Keep 'em coming!" Bulla waved her arm, beckoning the waitstaff while her two companions stuffed their faces.

"More of this one, please" Goten requested, lifting his bowl and pointing his finger.

On the ship they had to be sensible and stay aware of rationing their meals, but on Bhander, their eyes, stomach and wallets were free to be as indulgent as their little Saiyan hearts desired. Bulma had ensured each of them had more than enough credits to purchase what they needed and then some, and they were only too happy to spend their allowance on dinners made from fresh ingredients. The favourable exchange rate was an added bonus.

"Hey, Trunks," Bulla whispered, bringing her face in. "I'm pretty sure those girls are checking you out. I bet they're really into your obnoxious appetite."

He glanced over to the wall out of the corner of his eye while he tipped his bowl into his mouth, eventually giving a lazy shrug.

Said girls returned to their table with more dishes, both very blatantly making eyes at her brother. Bulla called one of them over. "He's cute, huh?" The waitress held an empty plate to her face bashfully. " _He's single,_ " she mock-whispered, causing Trunks to give her an unimpressed look while Goten let out a chuckle. The waitress gestured between Bulla and her brother questioningly, apparently unable to speak with them as easily as other locals had.

"Me and him?" Bulla responded. "No, he's my brother. See?" She pointed to her eye and then to Trunks'. "We're related."

"Ahhh," the waitress smiled, seeming to understand. She proceeded to point between Trunks and Goten, causing the latter to choke while Bulla burst out laughing, throwing her hand over her mouth. The heiress guffawed until she was red in the face and tears ran down her cheeks. Trunks simply continued with his meal while Goten blushed a fiery crimson.

"Man, she figured you two out fast, huh?" Bulla grinned, finally pushing her plate away. "Kami, that hit the spot. I wonder if they have anything like alcohol on this planet?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Trunks warned, nibbling the last of the meat off his bone. "We still have a lot of work to do, and we won't be able to get much done if we're all hungover."

"Oh, you're no fun," she feigned a pout. "But whatever, I could totally sleep now anyway."

"Yeah, I feel like I'm on the verge of crashing, myself," Goten exhaled, scratching the back of his head.

"Alright, let's take the rest to go and head back to our motel." Trunks pulled his card out once again as Bulla and Goten rose from their seats. They waited near the exit while Trunks paid the bill. The heiress watched as their waitress approached her brother on his way back towards them, whispered something briefly in his ear while she passed a slip of paper, and walked off. There was a notable pink tinge to his cheeks once he reached the two younger hybrids. Just as Bulla was about to open her mouth, he put up his hand. "Don't."

* * *

Bulla pulled her covers higher up her face when she felt sunlight hit her eyes.  _Wait, what?_ Aquamarine orbs shot open while her gaze darted around the room.  _Curtains? And they're blowing._ Sitting upright, she took in the rest of her surroundings: Window and sliding door to her right, TV opposite her double bed, exit on the left. She let out a breath.  _Yep, we're not on the ship anymore._ She sought her brother and Goten's kis, finding that both were nearby and stationary.

She sat on the edge of her bed, looking down at her bare legs.  _I wonder if I can fit in some sunbathing while we're planetside?_ Waltzing over to her  _own_  bathroom, the heiress threw off her t-shirt and underwear and stepped into the shower, relishing being able to pamper herself for the first time in weeks. Even last night she was forced to hurry, so as to not keep the two hungry Saiyan males waiting. But now, she was free to take her time, lather up and just let the water run while she zoned out.

"Just a minute," she called out when she heard a knock at her door, in the middle of wrapping herself in her towel. "Good morning," she greeted cheerfully, clutching the knot at her chest.

"Hey," her brother greeted. "Good to see you're already up. We're gonna grab breakfast, then see if we can start ticking some things off our list. How quickly can you be ready?"

"I just need to throw on my nun's habit then I'm good to go. Give me, like... three minutes?"

He placed his palm on her shoulder. "I couldn't be prouder of you than I am right now," he jested while he pretended to wipe away a tear. She rolled her eyes and shut the door, immediately reaching for her dress. After wrapping her hair and ensuring a few sneaky stragglers were carefully tucked away, she exited her room, spotting a head of dark hair turning the corner. Hurrying up to him, she threw her arms around his neck.

"Good morning Brother Goten," she chirped, causing him to come to a stop while he gripped her forearms and leaned backwards.

"What?"

"Nothing. Pretty great not having to share a bathroom, huh?"

"I dunno," he turned his head to peek over his shoulder, offering a boyish smile. "I got pretty lonely brushing my teeth all by myself."

"Oh, you poor thing." She hooked her arm in his while they plodded down the stairs. "Maybe you and Trunks should bunk up." Bulla gave him a look as she raised an eyebrow. "Oh look, there he is." She loosened her arm and bounced over to her brother.

"You are in a really good mood this morning," he said, looking at her suspiciously.

"You underestimate how much I benefit from excessive 'me time' in the shower," she responded, flicking her headscarf as if it were her real hair. Goten's hard laughter from behind her caused her to turn around and frown at the older Saiyan before puffing out her cheeks as she realised her awful choice of words. "I didn't mean it like that, you sicko!"

"Whatever, Bulla," he muttered, walking right past her as she stomped in place. "Everyone needs to scratch that itch once in a while right? Even Saiyan Princesses."

She gasped at the vulgarity of such a notion. "Not this Saiyan Princess!" she asserted. "I'll have you know I-"

"Aaand that's all I ever want to hear about this topic  **ever again** ," Trunks spoke, a good few levels of volume louder. "Let's find somewhere to eat before we're all forced to hear all the disgusting details about your sex life, locals included."

She folded her arms and lifted her nose, quietly brooding over the fact that Goten was possibly, maybe a teeny, tiny bit on the right track. Bulla would sooner eat her father's cooking than ever admit such a thing to the youngest son of Goku, but three weeks was  _kind of_ a long time to go without action. At least for her. In this day and age, a hook-up was only a phone call away, even when she wasn't in a relationship.  _Come to think of it, how the heck did Pan think she'd survive this?_ She narrowed her eyes as she stared into the back of her brother's head.  _She wouldn't..._

Skipping over to her two priestly shipmates, the heiress found that they had each already come across a couple of food vendors. She snuck over to Goten, who was standing with a few balls skewered on a stick in his left hand, and engulfed the morsel in one go while he spoke to the merchant. He turned to look at her just in time to catch her in the act. "That's talent, Bulla. I'm sure Reco is a very happy man." She almost choked, turning bright red.

"You're disgusting," she eventually coughed out, mouth still full. "This stuff is good, can you get me some?"

He passed her a few more that he'd been holding in his right hand before signalling to the stall owner. "What does it taste like?" he asked while he waited for the rest of his order.

"The outside is sweet, kind of like something honey-glazed from back home," she answered after a few moments of consideration. "The ball itself is like a deep-fried dough of some sort." Bulla plucked one off the top of the skewer and offered it to the older Saiyan. To her surprise, he didn't hesitate to lean in and wrap his mouth over it, lips faintly dragging over her fingertips while he savoured the sweet syrup. She felt a jolt at the sensation and berated herself.  _Ugh, I guess I do need to get laid. Only three more months, Bulla. Hah!_

"There's a service station of sorts about three miles from here," Trunks informed, joining the two while he held a stack of boxes in his arms. "We should be able to get fuel for the ship as well as water for the tanks."

"Let's move, boys!" Bulla threw out her fist and began marching ahead.

* * *

The Capsule Corp. heiress sat on an upside-down bucket, resting her chin in the palm of her hand while she dug her elbow into her knee and looked up at Goten lazily. He had his eyes closed while he folded his arms and leaned back into the last of the three massive water vessels they were meant to be filling. The pressure on the taps was excruciatingly low, which meant they were taking forever to restock. After half an hour, Trunks decided to get a headstart on the parts sourcing, leaving the two younger halflings to oversee the refilling operations.

"Do you think Pan and Trunks would ever hook up?" Bulla voiced casually.

"What?!" Goten blurted, throwing his eyes open, apparently caught entirely off-guard.

"You know what I mean." She looked at her nails, flicking off a piece of dirt.

"Why on earth would you ask that?"

"They're pretty close," she shrugged. "Closer than you and me. No offence."

"So what? That doesn't mean they want to jump each other's bones."

"Was just a fleeting thought." Bulla stood up and interlocked her fingers, extending her arms upward as she took a big stretch. He regarded her for another moment before resting his head back against the water tank.

"That would be pretty fucking weird," he finally answered. "But I guess, it's technically possible, as much as I don't want to think about it."

"I know, right? That's what I thought earlier." She boxed the air a few times before spinning into a roundhouse kick. "If they got married, our families would end up being officially tied."

He let out a hearty laugh and pushed himself up, standing in front of her with his palms up. She took his invitation and threw another series of punches into his hands. "Something tells me Vegeta would take offence to that idea," he snorted.

"My father's lost his edge," Bulla smiled, continuing to send blows his way, eventually sneaking an unexpected kick to his side. He quickly clamped down with his arm and grabbed her leg, forcing her to hop on one foot. "I think he's given up on having an opinion on who Trunks and I date. After the first dozen or so boyfriends, he probably realised I'm a lost cause."

"What about Bulma?" Goten raised an eyebrow, ducking as she launched a punch with her left fist.

"You know what? I wouldn't be surprised if she loved the idea," Bulla considered, glancing away momentarily. "She loves your dad - I bet she'd adore the thought of us being one big family." Goten gripped her arm when it flew his way once more, locking her in an awkward hold. He pulled slightly, causing her even more instability while she bounced on her left foot.

"Why are we even giving it this much attention?" the heiress laughed. "It's not going to happen. I just have too much time with my own thoughts these days."

"I dunno, you've got me thinking now," he admitted. "I mean, who better for a Saiyan than another Saiyan?" Bulla shot him a sceptical look which he returned with faintly furrowed brows as his own words apparently sank in. Both halflings turned their heads suddenly at the sound of splashing water. Neither had been paying attention to the progress of the vessel and it was currently overflowing. Goten quickly released his grip on her limbs and shut off the tap while Bulla hopped on top of it to kick out the hose and screw the cap back on.

"I guess we're finally done here," she sighed, encapsulating the last tank and popping the pod into her pocket along with the others. "Let's go find my brother."


	6. Goten the Tyrant

"Stay focused, Bulla," Trunks called over his shoulder on seeing his sister becoming distracted by yet another colourful stall. "We're not here for one of your shopping sprees."

"I know, I know." She flapped one hand while the other dragged over a striking silver-toned necklace encrusted with gems the same hue as her still-hidden hair.  _Oh my God, this is gorgeous. I've never seen anything like it. Maybe I should treat myself after all I've been through so far - early starts, no drinking, living with two filthy boys. Okay, they're not so bad, but- Oh Kami, matching earrings!_

"How much for the set?" Bulla pointed at the two items.

"Both?" The merchant scratched his stubble. "Eighty-thousand."

_Is that all?_

"Oh really?" she pouted, slumping her shoulders for added effect. "That's too bad. It's so beautiful, but my father says I'm only allowed to spend fifty today." The heiress turned to leave before she felt a hand gripping her arm.

"Wait, wait. I can do…" He released his grip and clasped his hands together, nodding his head side-to-side. "Sixty-five."

Bulla pressed her finger to her chin, feigning consideration of this new offer. "Fifty-five," she countered.

"Okay, okay. Fifty-five thousand."

Extending her palm, the heiress sealed the deal with a handshake, which perplexed the poor man, and winning Briefs smile. "Thank you. Daddy will be mad with me, but it's worth it for such well-crafted pieces."

"Thank you, thank you." He nodded in appreciation of her praise while he wrapped the jewellery up in some cloth and secured it with a few strands of twine. After slipping it into her canvas bag, she skipped over to the two older half-Saiyans.

_Too easy. I would have bought it for one-twenty._

"How much did you get off this time?" her brother asked, keeping his eyes ahead.

"Twenty-five thousand rones," she answered proudly, lifting her nose. He actually turned to look at her at hearing this.

"Seriously?"

"Mhm," she beamed up at him.

He hooked his arm over her shoulder and pulled her in for a squeeze. "Look at you," he laughed. "You're a natural."

"You don't think I've spent all these years being a Briefs without learning a thing or two about negotiations, do you?" she raised an eyebrow.

"The wind's picking up again," Goten murmured, causing Bulla to glance around. He was right. Sand was starting to beat at her ankles and she could see store signs swaying in the distance.

The three half-Saiyans had learned, in their three days on Bhander, that sandstorms were a regular occurrence and merchants had no interest in subjecting their wares to the harsh, destructive winds. They were liable to close up shop mid-sentence, Bulla found out the hard way. As quickly as they'd slam their shutters, the vendors would open once more as soon as the gusts had passed.

"Great," she groaned. It was always such a hassle when this happened since there wasn't much they could do to spend the time effectively, and there was no telling how long the storm would last. Trunks put his arms around both hybrids and led them away from the centre of the street where exposure was worst. She soon felt reprieve when he powered up enough to force energy outward.

They set themselves up in a short alley of sorts between two multi-storey dwellings.

"Dammit," Bulla muttered, tightening her folded arms while she glared at the dust cloud in front of her. "We were so close."

Trunks had found two out of the twenty-eight required parts the day before, which meant they only needed to source one more before calling an end to their Bhander stop. The rest would have to be found elsewhere. Despite enjoying having her feet on the ground, Bulla was even more eager to get the entire ordeal over with altogether. According to her brother, they were already making good time and she fully intended on keeping it that way.

"So once we get all this stuff home," Bulla began, slipping her bag off her shoulder and dropping it to the ground. "What's mom planning on doing with them? We're only getting three of each piece. That's hardly enough to start new production lines."

"We're hoping to analyse, or possibly even process, each item down to its most basic constituents," Trunks explained, maintaining his attention on the intensity of the storm outside. "And eventually synthesize the elements ourselves at the lab. But we want real-life examples first to take out some of the guesswork."

In the corner of her eye, Bulla could see Goten rotating his shoulder. "Are you okay?" she asked, noting that he had been quieter than usual today.

"Yeah," he grumbled, rubbing his neck. "Haven't been sleeping well since we landed. I keep waking up with sore muscles."

"Maybe you need a massage," the heiress put forward. "Trunks, why don't you give your best friend a hand?" This simply earned her a look from her brother, causing her to roll her eyes.  _Boys._  "Okay, fine. I'll do it."

She placed her hands on his shoulders and began rolling her thumbs over the tense bundles of muscle. "How's that?"

"Go harder," he muttered. "Don't be shy."

"It's sort of awkward with this Jedi suit in the way," she responded. "But whatever, I'll do what I can." Bulla proceeded to work at it with a bit more gusto, eliciting the occasional groan. "I'm definitely feeling a knot or two."

"Fuck, that feels good," he breathed, dropping his head forward.

Trunks peeled his gaze off the swirling sand to give the two younger hybrids a brief look. "I think it's starting to die down. We can probably get moving again. Come on."

* * *

Trunks was clearly being optimistic with his assessment, because it definitely wasn't over, but it had subsided enough to move through, she supposed. Bulla walked in the middle, arms hooked into each Saiyan beside her. This time she was the one to keep her energy raised while they missioned towards their final stop.

The souqs, as she'd been calling them mentally, had mostly consisted of rickety outdoor stalls thus far. Although, a few merchants did sell their stock through a window of their modest buildings. Judging by the occasional child she'd seen dawdling on the background, the heiress presumed their homes were attached to their businesses and the families simply lived on the other side. The bazaar they'd just come across, however, was entirely different.

They stepped through a wide entrance and Bulla couldn't help but pause at the sight in front of her. The footpath was flanked with a seemingly endless number of shops and the ceiling was not a ceiling at all. Instead, she saw rows of arched wood, occasionally draped with large, bright blankets and different shaped lamps hanging down at various heights. The vivid colours and exotic scents of their perfumes, incense and food along with all the hustle and bustle from deals being negotiated and vendors calling out for their attention was close to being an absolute sensory overload.

Despite being in the technology district, there was still no shortage of shops to appeals to other whims.  _This is like temptation alley,_ the heiress mused.

Trunks pulled out his tablet to remind the others of what they should be looking out for. "Chances are, we'll end up having to stop at anyone who seems to sell anything vaguely mechanical."

"Like over there?" Bulla pointed to a stall a few metres down. "I think I see tools of some kind hanging from the entrance."

Goten freed his arm and wandered over, taking the tablet with him. He pointed to the image of the piece they sought and Bulla saw the owner shake his head before gesturing down the passageway. The dark-haired halfling returned soon after. "He says it's not his domain, but there are more sellers further down that might have what we're after," he informed.

Keeping hold of her brother, Bulla continued to amble down the long stone path, eyes darting constantly at the various displays of strange merchandise.

After a few more false starts, Bulla finally hit the jackpot. "Trunks look!" she pointed excitedly. She could see their exact piece hanging on the wall of what looked to be an engineer's workspace-come-outlet. The burly vendor was imposing, with his deep voice and massive hands that were covered in what Bulla imagined to be grease or something similar.

"Can we get three of those, please?" Bulla requested, gesturing to the prized part.

He glanced lazily to where she was pointing before returning to his present task at the biggest lathe she'd ever seen. "That's not for sale."

"Okay?" she responded, notably disappointed. "Can I buy one around here someplace?"

"No," he answered frankly. "They're made to order."

"By who?"

"Me."

Bulla turned to her companions with a blank expression before resuming with the uncooperative store owner. "Could you make a few for  _me_ then?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I have a backlog of jobs. I don't have time for such menial requests. Buy what's on offer or keep moving," he grunted.

The heiress gasped at his abruptness.  _What an ass. "_ Is there really no one else I can buy that part from on this planet? It's really important that we return home with it."

"Maybe there are others." He wasn't even bothering to look up. "But I don't know of them. It will take you a long time to find them if they're out there. Very few people do what I do."

She wasn't getting anywhere. Bulla glanced around the room, hoping to find some sort of hint, eyes eventually falling on the name stitched into his overalls

"What can I offer you to change your mind, Mister Tauron?"

"Nothing."

_Ugh! Why is he being so difficult?_

Goten came up behind her. "What's going on?"

"He doesn't want to sell it to me," she sighed. "He says it's custom built, and he's probably the only one that can make it, but he's not interested in doing that for us, because he's too busy."

The older halfling looked up at the artisan. "Name your price, and we'll meet it."

 _Ace negotiating,_ Bulla smirked to herself.

Tauron barely made the effort to look up to see his new customer when he dropped his the tool he was currently machining, face contorting from shock to fear to rage while he leapt over the dividing counter to get at Goten's throat. "You're back!" he growled. "How dare you show your face here again. Have you not caused enough damage?!"

Bulla dodged his attack with a start before rushing over to the scuffle.

"Get off me!" Goten exclaimed from the ground, grabbing the man's hands and ripping them off his collar. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You don't fool me," he seethed, trying to pull away. "You've changed your hair but I'll recognise that face anywhere."

_What?_

Trunks was here now too, all three halflings staring at each other in disbelief at the sudden commotion. "Sir, you're mistaken," the lavender-haired halfling placated. "This is our first time visiting your planet. I can assure you that we're not looking for any trouble." He showed his palms in demonstration of his reluctance to fight.

"Goten, let him go," Bulla said. Reluctantly, he released his grip, slowly rising to his full height while he watched the man warily.

Tauron looked from Goten to Bulla and Trunks. "You two look different from the others." He pointed at the Briefs siblings. "But you!" He brought his finger right to Goten's nose. "You're like him. And you're strong, just like he was."

"If we look like some people that have given you grief," Bulla voiced, causing him to turn and face her. "It's just a coincidence. We're from a planet called earth, and no one from our homeworld has ever set foot on Bhander."

The man took a step towards Goten, still not entirely convinced. He scrutinised his face, pulled at his hair and circled him, patting his lower back along the way. "You look less angry. And your hair isn't as thick, or coarse. Do you have a tail?"

At this, all three exchanged a glance.

"No," Goten answered. "Do you want me to show you?"

Finally, their message appeared to get through. "I'm sorry." Tauron's expression dropped as he put his palms together. "Very sorry. I mistook you for someone else. We are good people, don't let my actions cloud your view of us here on our humble planet."

"You can make it up to us by building those parts for us," Bulla asserted, pressing her hands to her hips. "We'll pay you for it. Good money too. All we need is three and then you'll never have to see us again."

He gave her a nod. "Come back in three days. They'll be ready."

"That might be the weirdest thing that's ever happened to me," Goten muttered once they were outside. "And I've been eaten by Buu."

Bulla helped dust off his robe while she looked to her brother. "I'm not the only one that picked up on what he was getting at right?"

Trunks' arms were folded while he narrowed his eyes in thought. "There's another Saiyan out there," he stated. "Frieza missed more than just our fathers."

"It couldn't be Uncle Tarble either," Bulla added, straightening the fabric at Goten's shoulders. "He wouldn't cause trouble the way Tauron suggested."

"Well," Trunks exhaled as he loosened his arms. "There's not much point dwelling on it. Let's get back to our motel. We've got three days to kill, then it's time to ready the ship for take off."

* * *

Bulla was relaxing in an armchair, staring blankly at her TV and enjoying the post-dinner-and-shower laziness when she heard a soft knock at her door.

 _That's weird,_ the thought to herself.  _What's he coming for this time of the night? It's almost time to sleep._

"Hey," she greeted. "You alright?"

"I know it's late but I could hear that you were still awake and I wanted to ask you a favour." Goten was standing at her door in a white t-shirt and his usual shorts, looking a bit groggy.

"Yeah, of course," she answered, stepping aside to let him through. "What's up?"

"Would you mind giving me another rub? My shoulder is killing me. My back's not feeling too great either."

"Sure," she shrugged. "I've got nothing better to do. Do you want to sit in that chair, or lie down?"

"Definitely lie down." He threw off his t-shirt and flopped down on top of her covers with his arms at his sides.

 _Please, make yourself comfortable._ The heiress couldn't help but smile at how typically Son he was sometimes.

Kneeling a leg along one side of his torso, Bulla leaned across and began massaging the tops of his shoulders.  _Hmm, this is definitely easier without the robes._

Hopping off, she scratched through her toiletry bag for a bottle of cold-pressed oil, usually reserved for one of her hair masks.  _This will just have to do._

"I'm going to sit over your back okay?" she told him. "It'll be a bit more comfortable for me."

"Yeah, whatever," he mumbled into her sheet, eyes closed. Kneeling over him, one leg each side of his waist, Bulla resumed. "You're good," he added. "Those Saiyan hands really get in there."

"Thanks," she grinned. "I've been told before that I'm pretty great at giving massages. On the rare occasion I actually do it."

She continued to work at the knotted muscles all along his neck, back and shoulders, finding it only  _slightly_ embarrassing when he let out the occasional groan of relief.

"Okay, I'm starting to get tired," she yawned, brushing a few loose aquamarine strands aside with the back of her wrist and standing up tall before jumping off the bed. After washing her hands, she found he was still there, lying face down on her mattress.  _Oh. He fell asleep. That explains why the moaning stopped._

She figured she'd sit up for a bit longer and watch TV until he woke himself up, but after another hour, she glanced over to him while leaning her back against the headboard and realised he probably wasn't going anywhere without a prompt. Bulla considered the option of going to sleep with him lying next to her, but quickly tossed the idea out.  _Too weird. I know we probably count as friends at this point, but that's taking it to a whole other level. Plus, miss Clara would have a fit if she found out, even though it would be completely PG._

" _Goten,"_  Bulla whispered in his ear. "Goten." She shook his shoulder. She could sense him beginning to stir and, in a heartbeat, he went from opening his eyes to grabbing both of her arms and pinning her to the mattress beneath him.

Both halflings stared at other in shock, Bulla's breath catching in her throat as she took a gulp.

"What's…?" He looked down at her with furrowed brows.

"You fell asleep on my bed," she answered quietly.

"Oh." He loosened his grip and pushed himself away, coming to a sitting position at the edge of her mattress while he shook his head. "Sorry."

"It's okay," she exhaled, pressing into her elbows, heart still racing. "I'm just glad you didn't end up punching me."

He let out of snort as he continued to wake himself up, head hanging heavily while he wiped his palm over his face. "Your bed is way more comfortable than mine."

"Good thing we're done soon then, I guess," she offered.

"Yeah." He finally stood up, rolling his shoulder to assess its current condition. "Man, that's way better." Walking over to the exit, he brought his fingers to the handle before turning back. "Thanks, Bulla. See you in the morning."

She gave a nod before flopping on to her back once he closed the door behind him.

* * *

"Just make sure this is screwed on tightly," Trunks instructed, twisting the valve as far as it could go without breaking. "And that's pretty much it." He dusted his palms together before pushing himself back up to standing.

"Got it," Bulla nodded.

Her brother had just concluded his demonstration on how to replace the fuel and water on their ship and the two hybrids were currently standing on some grating in a compartment under the bathroom that she didn't even know existed. Trunks exited first through the awkwardly narrow hole above them and reached out an arm for Bulla to grab on to. Once the Briefs siblings were both on the top level, the heiress dropped the sneaky panel and stomped it down with her foot.

"Now for some diagnostics," he declared.

Trunks slipped into his room and picked up the tablet, joining her in the passageway. "We should have done this when we landed, but I forgot to. Hopefully nothing comes up."

Bulla followed her brother to the various points of vulnerability and watched carefully as he ran his tests.  _Seems straightforward enough. Press a button, see results. Green equals good, orange equals watch for later, red equals repair pronto._

"Why was Goten in your room the other night?" he asked after a few minutes of silence, keeping his attention on the read-outs.

"What?" Bulla's eyes widened, finding the question to be a  _little_ out of nowhere.

"A few nights ago, I felt his ki in your room after we'd all said goodnight."

"Oh. Yeah, that. He wanted a massage so I said why not," she answered easily, following close behind when he moved to the next item on his checklist.

"That's a pretty long massage. He was still there when I felt his ki spike a few hours later." He lifted his head to look at her.

She turned away to hide the blush that hit her cheeks at the reminder of their fleeting, but rather intense, moment on her bed. It had taken more time than she was willing to admit to doze off that evening since she kept replaying the scene in her head. "He ended up falling asleep," she explained. "And when I tried to wake him up he thought I was someone else, I guess."

"Right." He returned his focus to the tablet.

They exited the ship to assess the exterior, flying up to walk along the top. "You two are getting along better than I was expecting," Trunks said, knocking on one of the panels.

"You think so?"

"Earth Bulla would have kicked his ass to the street for even asking such a thing, let alone actually letting him fall asleep in her bed." He glanced at her out of the corner of her eye.

"You're probably right." She let out a sigh."I guess I feel like we're all in this crappy situation together, may as well help each other out when we can, you know? Make each other's lives a bit easier and all that."

"How very mature of you," he smirked, earning himself a shove.

A few minutes later, both Briefs turned their gazes to the sky as Goten's ki approached. Speeding up for the last stretch, he touched down within a few seconds, squinting up at them from the ground.

"Hey guys," he greeted. "Got the parts!" He held up a cloth bag in demonstration. "Plus, he gave us some homemade speciality of his family's as an apology for attacking me." This time he held up the other hand.

"Did you ask him about the other Saiyan?" Trunks queried, leaning over the edge.

"Yeah, he said he didn't want to talk about it," Goten yelled up. "But apparently the guy tried to commision him for some work and Tauron turned him down. That's why the Saiyan got violent."

"He didn't give a description or anything?" Bulla chimed in.

"Nope." The dark-haired halfling shook his head. "But I gave him our contact details and told him to give us or your mom a call in case he heard from him again."

"Good thinking," Trunks responded, digging through his pants pocket and throwing down a capsule. "Toss it in with the rest. We've just about finished checking out the ship and everything's good to go. Let's get out of this place."

* * *

Hi mom!" Bulla greeted enthusiastically, waving at the camera like a child possessed.

"There are my lovely children!" Bulma cooed, pressing her palms to her cheeks. Bulla could almost see the hearts in her mother's eyes.

The three half-Saiyans were huddled up in the control room, ditching the headset so all three could speak and hear at the same time. Vegeta walked by in the background, only to be grabbed and yanked back by his loving wife.

"Look, honey, they're back from their first stop." Bulma pointed at the screen. "Aren't you proud of them? They're doing so well." He stood blankly in front of the camera, arms folded. "Aren't you going to say hello?"

"Brats," he said plainly. "Take your time. No one misses you."

Bulla began to laugh, feeling a warmth wash over her as she watched her parents behaving exactly as she always knew them. "Love you too, daddy," she beamed. She saw the end of his lip curl before he wandered off once more.

"How is everything back home?" Goten asked from Bulla's left.

"Business as usual for us earth dwellers," Bulma smiled. "The weather's getting cooler, days are getting shorter and Mr Satan continues to be king of the world." She put up her finger suddenly as something came to her. "Oh, Clara's been calling every day looking for you, Goten. I'll be happy to tell her you're back on the ship. You two are just adorable, you know that?"

Bulla glanced at the dark-haired hybrid out of the corner of her eye.

"Great, thanks." He rubbed the back of his head while he offered a lazy smile.

"Mom, have you heard from Pan?" Bulla interjected. "I didn't get to talk to her before she left. "

"Not since she's gone off for training, I'm afraid. You probably won't hear for her for another few months or so. I'm sure she's having a blast though."

"How are things going with the company," Trunks spoke up from Bulla's right.

 _Of course_ that's  _what my brother asks about_. Bulla shook her head in disappointment.

"Everyone keeps asking about you," Bulma shared with a playful grin. "Morale amongst the office girls is at an all-time low." Bulla and Goten stifled childish laughter while her brother threw both a warning look. "I think they all understand why you're taking some time off, but they'll be happy to see you back in the director's chair when the time comes, I think."

"That's not what I meant," he grumbled.

"I know it wasn't," she chuckled. "But that's all you'll hear from me. Get Capsule Corp. out of your head for now and enjoy your little sabbatical. I won't drive your baby into the ground." Bulma gave him a wink. "I promise. Speaking of which." She looked at her watch. "I'm glad I got to speak to you three, but I have to head out. Safe travels!" After blowing a kiss, she killed the communication.

"Trunks, you stud." Bulla shoved her brother's shoulder. "I didn't know you had so many girls pining after you at work."

"That's nothing," Goten added in. "You should see what happens when we go out together. Girls scream after him like he's in a boy band or something. I've seen women beg him to sign their tits on more than one occasion."

"Oh Kami!" She threw her palm to her face in shame. "I keep forgetting my brother's a sex symbol. What is the world coming to."

Expecting a harsh retort, Bulla was surprised to see a sly grin appear on his features. "You don't know the half of it."

Bulla gasped while both men guffawed, exchanging a knowing glance. "And I don't want to! Keep your filthy secrets. And I'll keep mine. As far as I'm concerned, you're a virgin, now shut up before I wretch."

"Now you know what it's like for me!" Trunks exclaimed, throwing out his arms. "Seeing you all over those magazines with various trust-fund dickheads. You know, there was a time you swore you never wanted a boyfriend. You said 'daddy' was the only man for you. You wouldn't even hug Goten when the Sons came to visit."

"That's because Goten's gross," she giggled, folding her arms. "Obviously I caught on to that concept at a young age."

"Bulla, my feelings!" Goten gasped, pretending to clutch his heart, only causing her to laugh even harder.

"Okay, kids." Trunks approached the console. "Only five days 'til our next stop. We'll be needing our winter coats for this one. Ellis is going through an ice age and it's not going to be as straightforward as Bhander."

"From a desert to an  _ice-planet_? Who decided our itinerary?" Bulla chastised. "I bet it was daddy, wasn't it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well that all went reasonably smoothly, phew.
> 
> Thank you for the feedback and to everyone who's reached out or shared their thoughts so far!


	7. Sweet Ellis

"I'll catch up," Goten spoke, gripping the edge of the main door as Trunks stepped through to exit the ship. "I need to sort something out first."

Bulla zipped her heavy jacket all the way to the underside of her nose and pulled the toggles at her collar, a frosty breeze already licking at her face. "Really? Can't it wait 'til we get back? "

"I don't think so," he muttered, rubbing his palm over the back of his neck. "But it shouldn't take long."

She shrugged in response, "Suit yourself," and hopped out.

_Whoa,_ she paused once her boots sunk into the snow. _That definitely bites._ The heiress pulled her hood cords even tighter before stomping over to her brother and hooking her arm into his elbow.

"So boss," she shivered. "What's first?"

Trunks was staring at his tablet while he slowly pivoted on the spot, glancing up occasionally to assess his surroundings in relation to the digital map between his hands. Once he seemed satisfied, the lavender-haired hybrid encapsulated the device and popped the cap into his pocket.

"Alright," he began, rubbing his hands while he cast his gaze west. "Things will be a bit different on Ellis."

"Uh-oh."

Trunks deployed a hoverbike with a thick, transparent polycarbonate windscreen reaching all the way to the back of the vehicle, forming a wide protective strip overhead. He hopped into the driver's seat and Bulla got in behind him, holding him tightly as the engine kicked in and they started to rise. "Let's find some shelter first and then I'll fill you in."

They traveled through the icy air for roughly thirty minutes, passing over acres of snow-capped trees before the smell of burning wood reached Bulla's nostrils, immediately bringing forth memories of winters on earth - sitting around the fireplace in her family home, gossiping with her mother over hot chocolate or smothering her father in hugs and kisses she knew he secretly adored. If they were lucky, Trunks would join them for an hour or two, but no one held their breath.

Bulla leaned her cheek against her brother's back and closed her eyes. _It feels like forever since we've spent this much time together. I've missed him._

"Looks like we've found the village," Trunks yelled over his shoulder.

The heiress looked down, taking in the sight below. Strings of modest homes came into view. Each dwelling had a little chimney and, judging by all the streams of smoke, everyone had a fire going.

Trunks lowered the bike and stepped off once they reached the village outskirts. A guard stood watch outside the large wooden gate and marched towards them as they came closer.

"Good day. Please state your reason for visiting West Ellis," he said, eyes unwavering while he greeted the oldest of the two siblings. Bulla found her own gaze glued to the man, entirely intrigued by his appearance. While most of his body was understandably covered, his face was exposed, revealing a complexion so fair, he was on the verge of being transparent. The faint capillaries in his skin were visible and his eyes were a striking pale blue.

"Hi," Trunks offered his palm. "I'm here with my sister on holiday." After having his handshake ignored, he directed his fingers towards Bulla. "We're from a planet called earth and are hoping to see a bit more of your world."

The guard looked from the lavender-haired halfling to his wary sister, regarding each of them carefully. "Not the most conventional holiday destination, is it?" he smiled amiably, lips curling under his heavy white moustache.

"You're right," Trunks nodded. "We have some items we're hoping to find while we're here. Do you have a technology district?"

"Hah!" the man exclaimed. "If you're here to trade, you've come to the wrong place, but you two seem harmless enough. Give me a moment." He spun around and returned to his post. Not long after, the gates slowly began to open. "Enjoy your stay," he said as the Briefs siblings stepped through.

"Oh!" Bulla paused suddenly, turning to face the guard. "We have a friend who will be joining us shortly. Can you please let him in too?"

"Sure thing, miss..?"

"Bulla," she answered. "And this," she pointed to her brother. "Is Trunks. Goten should be here soon."

"I'm Guff," he nodded. "I help keep an eye on things around here. Welcome to Ellis."

Bulla and Trunks proceeded to wander down the wide cobblestone path, quietly taking in the quaint wooden homes lining the street, stacks of firewood piled high outside each one.

"Ooh, a fountain." She bounced over to admire the craftsmanship. The creatures at the centre were not any she could recognise - equine from the waist up and some kind of sea mammal from the waist down. _Weird._

Continuing along Bulla couldn't help but smile at the sight of children screaming and chasing each other, hiding behind posts and trough planters while their mothers ambled towards the town square.

The entire village was like something out of a fairytale. _I wonder if I could ever live like this - the simple life,_ she mused.

As expected, Bulla soon felt the familiar and reassuring ki of Goten Son approaching and touching down outside the gate. The two Briefs paused, waiting while they watched the large doors open and the single bundled up figure walked through. He made his way over to them, though apparently not in any sort of hurry.

"Hey," he greeted softly, taking in the surrounds while he kept his hands in the pockets of his heavy coat.

"Good to see you finally made it," Bulla teased, linking their arms. "I was beginning to think you were going to sit this one out and just wait until we came back to the ship with the job already done."

He didn't respond, or even acknowledge that she'd said anything really. His eyes, and mind, it seemed, were elsewhere. Bulla tracked his gaze, but he wasn't even looking at anything in particular.

"There's supposed to be an inn nearby," Trunks spoke up, glancing around. "Keep an eye out for signs."

The three halflings continued down the stone path, a light dusting of snow sitting atop of the smooth surface, until Bulla called out excitedly, "Found it!" like a child playing 'I-spy.' She pointed to a double story masonry building a few houses down. It had a cedar door containing six stained glass panels, and creaked when Trunks pulled it open.

"Oh, you three must be the earthlings!" a plump, eager woman said excitedly. "I've been waiting for you."

"Really?" Goten responded, slipping off his coat. "We just got here."

"Well, news travels fast in here West Ellis. In case you haven't noticed," she added with a pleasant smile. "This isn't the biggest of towns. I'm Mable." She pressed her palms to her chest. "Welcome to The Stumble Inn. I'm guessing you'll need a place to stay? I'm only too happy to show you to our rooms if you're interested."

The three hybrids followed as she led them through her generously-sized building. Everything inside was made of solid wood - the floor, the bar, the stools, the barrels, the stairs. The large open space had a warm, rustic feel and orange tint, thanks in no small part to the fire that probably burned all hours of the day. They were currently making their way to the second floor which overlooked the downstairs tavern and housed all the rentable rooms.

"This one would be for the lovely lady," she pointed to the first door. " And those two for you gents. Washrooms are down the hall. Please, make yourselves at home while you mull it over." Mable rubbed Bulla's shoulder briefly before turning back around and heading down the stairs.

_What a nice lady,_ the heiress thought to herself. _The people here are so friendly._

After confirming their stay and dumping their belongings in their respective rooms, the earthlings reconvened near the rails of the second floor. Bulla pressed her palm to the varnished wood and glanced down. There were a couple of patrons sitting at the bar, minding their own business, while Mable polished some glasses.

"So here's the deal," Trunks spoke up, causing Bulla to tear her gaze away from the cosy scene below her. "There's a village blacksmith that we can speak to a little way down the street and I'm going to buy as much from him as I can, but chances are that won't be much. Guff wasn't kidding when he said this place doesn't offer much in the way of trading."

"Then why are we here?" Bulla tilted her head.

"Because Ellis is incredibly rich in minerals," her brother answered. "We're probably going to have to go out ourselves and mine for a few raw chunks of ore."

" _What_?!" she exclaimed, keeping her voice low. "We're miners now?"

"Relax, princess," Trunks mocked, dragging his fingers through his hair. "It'll be easy. Machines do most of the work, including telling us how close we are to whichever metal we're looking for. All we need to do is man the tools that get it out of the ground."

"How low I've fallen," Bulla smirked. "I'm away from West City for just over a month and apparently I do blue collar work now?" She looked over to Goten, noting his lack of reaction. _Did he even hear me?_

Trunks hung his arm over her shoulder while he led her down the stairs and towards the exit. "Put it on your CV. Maybe you can score yourself a respectable labour job."

Bulla scrunched her face and stuck out her tongue at the thought while she pushed the main door open. The air was cool, but tolerable, and all three left their hoods down. Villagers were staring, children were pointing, and suddenly Bulla didn't feel quite as anonymous as Pan had promised. A little girl, who looked to be around seven, with platinum blonde pigtails bounced over to the trio, pale eyes wide while she fixed her gaze to Goten.

"Can I please touch your hair?" She reached out a short arm and flexed her fingers. Bulla frowned at the strange request while she searched for the girls' parents - there were two older girls watching nearby, one Bulla's age and the other a bit older.

"Uh…" Goten looked between his travel companions, apparently seeking some input, before responding. "Sure." He knelt down and tilted his head to the ground. A tiny hand tentatively edged towards the spiky mass and squealed once she felt it give way beneath her palm.

"Inga, no!" One of the other girls came running, holding her long skirt while she did so. "I'm so sorry," she huffed, pulling the young girl away. "How rude. Please forgive her. She's never seen anyone with such dark features before." If her cheeks weren't already red from the cold, along with her sudden jog, Bulla would have sworn the newcomer was blushing while she looked at the baffled halfling. "In fact," she glanced back at her friend. "None of us have, really."

Bulla's eyes jumped open while she surveyed the rest of the current villagers. _She's right! Everyone here is so fair-skinned, and their hair is practically white. Even their eyes have barely any colour._

Goten hesitated. "You can touch it too if you like," he finally offered. She did, before calling her friend over. Bulla could do nothing but watch as the two women fingered his hair, thumbed the bone around his eye and dragged their palms over his cheek and dark stubble.

"You hair is so thick," one murmured. He simply stood there, while more and more villagers mustered the courage to evaluate him more closely.

"I don't believe this…" Bulla uttered. "For the second freaking time, I'm completely overlooked as being the exotic one." She could see her brother's shoulders shaking as he restrained his laughter at the sight before them. At this stage, Goten was completely surrounded by a sea of pale-haired women of various ages, each trying desperately to get a piece of him. His face was bright red while he slowly backed away. "Okay, shows over!" Bulla announced, slipping in front of the hybrid and throwing out her arms. "Thank you for your interest, but we actually have shit to do."

She was soon met with cries of disapproval and had to duck when an empty drink can came flying at her head. "Who threw that?! Actually, nevermind. Goten," Bulla gripped his arm and hauled over him to the other side of the street, throwing death glares at anyone who dared to follow. "Let's go."

Trunks came jogging behind them, throwing his head back in laughter. "Dude, that was nuts!" he cackled. "Where did all those women come from? It was like some kind of flash mob."

"Do these people have no manners?!" Bulla moaned, keeping her grip on her fellow half-Saiyan while she briskly marched in the direction of their first stop. "You can't just go touching peoples' faces like that."

"I'm pretty sure they touched more just than my face," he mumbled.

"Anything to say for yourself mister tall, dark and handsome?" she teased, folding her arms.

He turned back to see if anyone was behind them before answering. "Yeah. Women are fucking crazy," he muttered, wiping his palm over the back of his neck.

Bulla readied herself to deliver a verbal assault, but thought better of it at the last second when she saw the look on his face. _He's genuinely mortified._ Instead, she said, "If anyone bothers you again, they'll need to answer to me."

* * *

"Okay." Trunks stepped in front of Bulla and Goten while they waited on the wooden bench outside the blacksmith's shop front, clutching a heavy bag in his right hand. "Three out of seven is better than I was expecting. That puts us at six parts acquired altogether so far."

Bulla pried his purchase open, taking a peek at the pieces that they'd already sacrificed so much for to get their hands on. _My dignity being the biggest thing._ They were entirely unremarkable, just like those found on Bhander. She let out a sigh. "I guess that means we're putting on our mining hats tomorrow?"

"Clever girl," he grinned. "But let's not worry about that now. It's getting late, so we should head over to Stumble and have ourselves a feast."

The three hybrids mosied towards their lodgings quietly, Bulla in the middle with her arms hooked into each man while she pondered the one to her right. Goten still seemed distracted, barely even saying a word while they waited for her brother unless Bulla prompted him to. He wasn't fussing with his shoulder, she noted, so it was probably something else. _He's not off towards either of us,_ she added to her mental checklist while she glanced up at him silently. _So I don't think we did anything to annoy him. Is it about those ladies from earlier? Surely not. He's hardly a stranger to female attention. Plus, he was acting funny before any of that even happened._ He kept his eyes ahead, apparently lost in his own world.

"You digging the dark eyes too?" her brother teased, catching her as she scrutinized the older hybrid.

"What! No!" she blurted, embarrassed that she'd been obvious enough to be seen watching Goten at all.

"Uh-huh," he smirked. "You were looking at him an awfully long time."

Goten turned his head to the two Briefs. "What's happening?"

"My sister was checking you out," Trunks answered easily, unhooking his arm as he dodged a smack from said sister.

"No I wasn't!" Bulla declared, cheeks turning red. "I was just thinking about something and happened to be looking in your direction."

"Oh, okay," Goten shrugged, coming to a stop when they reached their destination. Trunks pulled the door open and stepped in first. Before Goten had a chance to follow, Bulla yanked back on his elbow. "What?" he asked dully.

"What's going on with you?" she asked quietly.

He looked back at the door momentarily. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Something's up."

He let out a breath. "It's nothing."

"It doesn't seem like nothing," she frowned. "I thought you'd be excited to eat a proper, homemade meal after we've had to live on the same old space cooking for the past five days."

"I'm not that hungry, I guess," he offered with another shrug.

"Okay, now I know something's wrong with you." She folded her arms. "Is it about those women harassing you? Because I promise I'll kick all of their asses if they get in your space again."

His lip curled. It was the closest thing she'd seen to a smile all day. "Thanks, Bulla." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Who would've thought you'd be the one protecting _me_ from unwanted attention." He let out another breath. "I don't really feel like going into it, alright?"

_Ouch. I guess we're not that close yet._

She looked up at him, seeing the heavy look in his eyes. _Whatever it is, he's hurting._ Impulsively, she threw her arms around his neck and squeezed tightly. He seemed surprised at first, but returned her embrace after a few seconds, exhaling into her hair while she gently rubbed his back.

Bulla pulled away and placed her palm on the side of his face, offering a soft smile before leaning in and planting a kiss on his cheek. "C'mon." She grabbed his hand and led him through the inn's front door. "Saiyans gotta eat"

* * *

"Kami, that might be the best meal I've ever had," Bulla groaned as she slumped further into the old weathered couch. Goten was stretched out across the length of it with his head in the heiress' lap while she absently ran her fingers through his hair and watched the fire. "I wonder if we could convince her to join us as our full-time cook?"

"But then what will happen to me?" Goten frowned up at her. "She'll put me out of a job."

"Don't be silly," she prodded him in the chest. "You're my court jester - the most important of royal occupations."

"Is that so?" he mumbled, closing his eyes. "When was the last time I did something to entertain you?"

"Oh, easy," she chuckled. "This morning when the three of us raced for the bathroom. You slipping and crashing into Trunks is one of the funniest things I've ever seen. It's a good thing I won, because I was laughing so hard off I almost peed."

Both halflings broke into full-bellied laughter, earning themselves a few looks from the other patrons. "Also, last night," Bulla added more quietly, wiping a tear. "When you did that impression of my dad. I almost wish he was with us to see it." She clutched her stomach.

"Oh no way," he grinned. "He would've fried me on the spot. Of all us hybrids, I'm pretty sure he tolerates me the least."

"Are you kidding!" Bulla giggled. "Daddy loves you! Well as close to love as he can feel, at least from what I hear."

"Yeah?" he rolled his head to look up at the heiress. "And what are you hearing, exactly?"

"That he totally has a soft spot for you." She poked him in the dimple. "I mean, you were practically another son to him over the years. As much as he pretends to despise your father, I think we've all figured out at this point that it's all bark and no bite."

"I don't think anyone speaks as fondly about Vegeta as you do," he snorted. "Not even your mother. Trunks idolised the shit out of him when we were growing up though."

Bulla leaned her head against the back cushion, closing her eyes as she continued to finger his mane. "I'm glad you decided to join us," she said softly.

"Am I hearing this right?" he jested, jabbing her in the stomach. "Bulla Briefs is admitting that she likes my company?"

"I'm this close to taking it back," she warned, faintly lifting a single lid. "I never realised how much I missed the times before we all grew up and got lives outside of each other. And don't pretend you don't have opinions about me. I know you think I'm spoiled."

"You are spoiled," he chuckled, stretching his arms out behind his head. "But you're right. Life caught up with all of us pretty fast. I feel like I blinked and suddenly you and Pan were all grown up and Trunks was _engaged_. Like a proper-fucking-adult."

"You're no teenager anymore yourself, you know. I barely even remember you as anything but an adult."

"I've never been an adult," he murmured, gazing into the fire.

_Where did that come from?_ Bulla frowned at the sudden shift in tone. "What are you talking about?" she smiled, shoving his shoulder. "You have a kickass career and live in a sweet apartment in West City with your gorgeous long-term girlfriend who _herself_ is on the verge of superstardom. What more do you need to feel like a grown-up?"

After a few moments of silence, Goten let out a yawn. "I think I'm gonna turn in," he said, pressing into her leg to push himself up.

"Yeah, me too," she uttered, extending her arms to the ceiling while she stretched her back. "Even my brain feels heavy." She joined her fellow halfling, retreating from the cozy lounge nook, and wandered back towards the staircase.

Goten clapped Trunks on the shoulder as he passed the bar, temporarily interrupting his conversation with one of the locals while he threw him a thumbs up. Bulla hugged her brother's back, kissed her fingers and wiped them across his cheek.

Lazily, the two younger hybrids dragged their feet up the steps. Once she reached her door, she stumbled through and collapsed onto her single sleeper bed. _Ugh, The Sandman really snuck up on me tonight._ She wiped her hand up her face and through her hair. _I still need to brush my teeth..._

* * *

_What's that rustling sound?_ Bulla groaned as she groggily attempted to open her eyes. From what little she could see, it was still pitch black outside and her curtains were drawn. _Do they have rats? Ew, I hate rats._

_Wait? That feels..._ Before she had a chance to finish the thought, the heiress fell back asleep.

* * *

When Bulla awakened for the second time, it was still dark and she was met with the hazy silhouettes of two half-Saiyan men scratching through every corner of her room. She pushed into her hands, trying to sit up, but fell back down, much to her confusion.

"You too?" Goten muttered as he approached her bed, pressing his palm to her neck.

"What's going on?" she grumbled, squeezing her lids tightly before trying her damnedest to open them again. _Kami, my head. I feel hungover and I didn't even drink anything last night._

"Bulla," he said, watching her with concern. "Can you sit up?"

"I tried," she croaked. "I can barely control my arms. I feel so heavy."

"Dammit."

"Trunks, what happened?" she asked again, beginning to feel panic setting in.

"Our stuff was taken during the night," he answered with an exasperated sigh, lifting her coat to look under it and dropping it again once he saw that there was nothing to find. "They cleared all of our rooms without any of us even realising."

"What do you mean?" she winced while she attempted to get up once more.

"Everything is gone, Bulla."

"Everything?" she repeated.

"Everything."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops, first spanner! It was really only a matter of time until things started getting hairy for these three.
> 
> Thank you everyone for your engagement so far :) I love hearing your thoughts and speculations.


	8. Fidelis

"How..?" Bulla pressed her palm to her forehead, barely able find the words. It didn't help that her head was still throbbing. "How is that possible?" she managed to croak. "How did all three of us sleep through someone, or some _ones_ , just helping themselves to all of our stuff."

"Because we were drugged," Goten answered quietly, prying her lids open while he continued his inspection of the heiress.

_What…_

"I think I'm about to throw up," she whispered, covering her mouth. Goten quickly grabbed the mop bucket sitting near the door and held it under her face, gripping her hair with his free hand while she emptied her guts into the iron pale.

After wiping her lips with the back of her wrist, Bulla clutched the edge of her bed with both hands and hung heavily over the side, aquamarine locks kissing the floorboards. Goten placed the bucket back on the ground and crouched down in front of her.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

"Ugh," she groaned. "I feel horrible. What, were they trying to kill us or something?"

"Maybe," Trunks answered bluntly, arms folded while he seemed to be considering their current situation. "I think whatever they did to us would have killed a regular person. There's no way they could have known that we've got stronger constitutions."

Bulla and Goten glanced up simultaneously at Trunks' words.

"I don't hear any movement downstairs and there's no noise from the street," he added. "So the rest of the village is probably still asleep. We would be too if Goten hadn't woken me up a few minutes ago saying that something was off."

Trunks walked over to the wooden chair and grabbed the thermal leggings that were hanging over the back of it. "Get dressed." He passed them to her. "We need to get out of here."

With plenty of effort, she swung her legs around to sit at the edge of her bed and rolled them on before sloppily pulling up her skirt, lying back down on her mattress while she shimmied it on. Goten gathered her boots and joined her on the bed, holding her jacket sleeves as she slipped her arms through. Once her coat was on, she took a deep breath.  _Okay. Time to stand._  Pressing into her blankets, the heiress put all her weight on shaky legs, almost losing balance before Goten caught her, ducking his head under her arm to keep her supported.

"Let's take the window," Trunks said quietly, nodding towards the glass panel on the opposite side of the room. "I don't want to risk anyone downstairs hearing us while we make our way to the front door." He walked over and threw it open, stepping through and hovering above the snow while he waited for the others.

With Goten's aid, Bulla stumbled towards her brother, leaning into the window pane while she took another breath. The sun was only just beginning to rise, from what she could tell.  _God, I feel so dizzy._

"Do you need a hand?" Goten asked, pressing his palm to her back. "Trunks, take her." She looked up at her brother, feeling completely pathetic. He extended his arms and she hooked her fingers behind his neck. Grabbing hold of her waist, Trunks floated backwards while she leaned her face into the soft faux-fur trim of his hood.

Goten followed after her, rubbing his gloved hands together as he blew into them. "Now what?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," Trunks sighed, glancing around the village while he kept a tight hold on his sister. She could barely keep her head from spinning, although she was grateful for the opportunity to rest her eyes again. "We need to get our shit back. Whoever took it can't be far, but finding them could be tricky. We don't know our way around here, and we don't know who could be in on it."

"Well we've got at least one suspect, right?" Bulla grumbled.  _Fucking Mable._

"Do you think we can trust Guff?" Goten put forward, pulling Bulla's hood up to cover her ears.

"It's hard to say," Trunks answered, gazing down at his sister. "He's either exactly the person to speak to, or one-hundred percent out to get us too."

"Tell you what," the dark-haired demi-Saiyan began. "You stay with Bulla while she recovers and I'll keep an eye on him - see who he talks to throughout the day, and whether the innkeeper is one of them."

Trunks considered his idea for a few moments. "Alright. That's probably a good place to start. Make sure no one sees you. We'll do the same."

Goten gave a single nod before flying off towards the main gate.

* * *

"I'm so thirsty," Bulla whined, pressing into her palms. She couldn't remember falling asleep again, but it seemed Trunks had given up his coat as a makeshift bed for her somewhere along the line. The worst of her nausea had passed, and she wasn't feeling quite as weak as earlier, but the lack of hydration definitely wasn't helping her recovery.

"There's a stream not too far from here," her brother responded from the rock he was sitting on. He had brought them to an isolated patch of forest a few miles from the village while they waited for Bulla's symptoms to ease. She had caught him leaning against a tree every now and then, but he didn't make any comment about how he was weathering the aftereffects.  _I wonder how Goten's doing_ , she wondered quietly.  _He can't be feeling too great either and he's out there having to tail those two-faced villagers with his full concentration._

Bulla began walking the direction her brother mentioned, eventually hearing the faint trickle of water and following the sound. Crouching down, she let her hand dip into the crystal clear water, flinching at the harshness of the frigid temperature. After taking a few gulps, and gargling to get the taste of puke out of her mouth, she stood up and wiped her lips with her sleeve.

_What's that?_  she squinted when her eyes locked on to something on the ground.  _Footprints,_ she realised as she crouched down once more. She put her own boot next to it and scrutinized the shape.  _Not mine or Trunks'._ Turning her head, she sensed her brother was still stationary a few metres away and decided to see where the prints led.

As Bulla followed the tracks, she noted that whoever made them must have been a darn sight heavier than she was, since the prints went way deeper into the snow than her own.

Before long, she came across a tarpaulin of sorts over a waist high mound.  _What's it covering? Seems like a weird place to store firewood. There's not even a cabin or anything out here._

Bulla screamed when she lifted the cover, immediately stumbling backwards and tripping in her haste. Bringing her hands to her face, she attempted to soothe herself.  _It's okay. You're okay._

Trunks was at her side not ten seconds later. "What happened?!"

She held her palm over her mouth and pointed at the tarp. He rolled his head to see what she was gesturing at and walked over.

"Jesus," he murmured, dropping the sheet and letting out a breath. "Guess this place really isn't as sleepy as it seems."

The crunch of a breaking branch caught both halflings' attention, each staring into the forest while they held their breath.

"Will you look at that," a masculine voice spoke up as he appeared between the trees. "We've been looking for you all day, and here you are, right in our backyard."

"Who's we?" Bulla responded, standing up slowly. Trunks took a step towards her while he kept his eyes on the newcomer.

The man was tall and gaunt, cheeks sunken. Like most of the others, his skin was almost translucent, eyes a dull grey, and he had a white beard that hid his mouth when he spoke. Now that he was closer, Bulla could see that he had a rifle-type firearm in his right hand, but he didn't seem at all apprehensive about coming upon the two half-Saiyans.

"Don't take another step," Trunks warned, showing his gloved palm. "Trust me when I say you don't want to fight us."

"Oh don't you worry. I'm well aware that you aren't to be underestimated," he smiled before dropping his voice. "We've put hundreds of visitors to sleep with our tonics over the years and not one has woken up the next day." Bulla shuddered at the ease with which he shared such a statement. "When Mable told me your rooms were empty this morning I almost wanted to get a look at you myself to see what sort of people could survive that high a dose. Looks like my wishes were answered."

His voice sent shivers down her spine.  _This guy is so creepy._

"Where's our stuff?" Trunks voiced.

"You mean that useless collection of oversized pills? What a strange lot you are." He shook his head, still speaking softly. "You come all the way from the other side of the galaxy with absolutely nothing of use. You weren't even worth the poison we fed you."

"Give it back and we will leave you and your fucked up town," the lavender-haired halfling rasped, clenching his fist.

"Sorry, friend," he smirked. "I can't help you." The stranger pulled up his gun and gazed down the barrel, aiming the tip at the older of the two hybrids.

Within seconds, more figures began to appear between the trees, each carrying their own strange weapons. Instinctively, the heiress lowered into a defensive crouch

"Bulla," Trunks uttered under his breath, taking the same pose. "Get out of here. I can deal with these guys."

"I'm not leaving you," she asserted, eyes glossing over the sea of faces before her. There must've been around a dozen of them.

"Suit yourself. Three, two, one..."

Both siblings launched themselves at the crowd.

"They're not as old school as they look," Bulla grunted, dodging an incoming laser beam to the face. She shot a ki ball at the guilty gun, watching as its wielder yelped and dropped it in a hurry. A net sailed passed her left, going straight for her brother. He ducked out of the way and blasted a nearby tree. When it fell, the assailants scattered like mice.

_We've so got this,_  Bulla smiled to herself, sending out another ball. She felt her brother's back pressing against her own and could hear him breathing heavily. The heiress turned her head.  _He hasn't had as much chance to rest as I have,_ she realised. Her own head was still spinning, but she tried not to think about that.  _We need to make this quick._

Another net flew at them.  _Nice try, fools,_  she sidestepped and soon found her arms squeezing at her sides, pressure building as the set of chains tightened. "Ah!" she yelled when she felt a sudden jolt of electricity. Her muscles spasmed involuntarily, causing her to temporarily lose control.

"Gotcha," a middle-aged woman grinned, roping Bulla in towards her.

"No you don't." Bulla yanked on the metal lasso, sending the attacker careening in her direction. After encircling her in her arms, Bulla took to the sky. "Do you know how to fly?"

The woman screamed, shaking her head and twisting her body while she fixed her eyes on the drop below.

"Oh, you don't like it up here? Shall I let you go then, so you can be back with your friends?" Bulla taunted.

"You cruel people," she exclaimed. "Why are you targeting us?"

"What! Why are  _we_ cruel? You're the ones who are came after  _us,_ " the heiress countered.

"Only because you attacked the innkeeper and her husband!"

"Are you joking right now?" Bulla argued, feeling her temper climb. " _They_  tried to kill  _us._ I've been spewing all day thanks to that poison they fed us."

The woman hesitated, turning to scrutinize the aquamarine-haired fighter cautiously. "They told us that you threatened them in the night but they managed to escape unharmed. No one had seen any of you since yesterday, so we believed them."

"My brother and I have been out here trying to recover this whole time, you morons!" the heiress huffed. "I swear to Kami I could drop you right here."

"NO!" she exclaimed. "They told us you were dangerous, and that our children were all at risk if we didn't stop you. They roped the rest of us in to join the manhunt." Bulla allowed her grip to loosen, steadily feeling the woman slip downward. "If you hurt me, they'll kill your friend!" her hostage added hastily.

_What?_ Bulla sought out Goten's ki. It was low and hard to pinpoint.  _Is he hurt, or hiding?_

She felt herself losing resolve. "Just tell me how we can get our things back, and we'll leave you alone."

"I don't know where your things are." The lady paused. "But I think I know who does. Let me take you to him."

"I'm not going anywhere without my brother, so you have one chance to convince your friends to stop attacking us, or it's over." Slowly Bulla lowered down, keeping one arm wrapped firmly around her hostage's middle while the other gripped her neck. "One chance," she reminded.

On seeing one of their own in the arms of one of the visitors, a few villagers halted their assault. "Speak," Bulla commanded.

"Everyone!" her captive began, catching the rest of her friends' attention. She turned her head to look at the heiress. "Don't worry about me. Do what you must! They're strong but they're soft. Kill this bitch!"

"Big mistake," Bulla growled, bringing a stiff palm to the woman's neck and swiftly chopping it against the delicate surface, knocking her out instantly. Looking over to her brother, she saw he was attempting to catch his breath, leaning his palms on to his knees. The heiress jumped in front of him and swatted away an incoming lance.

"Trunks," she said out over her shoulder. "We need to find Goten. She could be bluffing, but I think they might have him."

"Okay, let's finish this," he panted, throwing his head back once he'd straightened. Both Briefs rose above the treetops, unleashing a flurry of energy beams to the ground below. Once the smoke cleared, Bulla could see most were groaning, clutching at various burns and wounds. "Good," Trunks exhaled. "That should slow them down. Let's go."

* * *

"Do you need a second?" Bulla asked, watching him in concern while he trailed behind her, flying notably more sluggish than she knew he was capable of.

"I'm fine," he uttered, clutching his stomach. The heiress slowed down and slipped an arm around his back, supporting him as they touched down around the corner from the front gate. As soon as their boots hit snow, he was on his knees, pressing a gloved hand to the ground. Lavender strands hung past his face while he took a handful of slow breaths. " _Fuck_."

She rubbed his back while she knelt next to him, knowing all too well what he was feeling, grateful that he had sucked it up initially for the sake of being her crutch. After a few moments, he stood back up and closed his eyes. "I think I've found him."

Past the point of manners, the Briefs siblings simply flew over the village walls while they sought their remaining party member. Bulla couldn't quite get a lock on Goten herself, but she acknowledged Trunks would have had way more practice pinpointing him over the years. Ensuring the coast was clear, the heiress followed her brother as he glided from roof to roof until they eventually found the youngest son of Goku and Chi-Chi sitting in some shingles.

"Oh my God you're okay!" Bulla flung her arms around Goten's neck and buried her face into his coat. He looked down at her in confusion before furrowing his brows at the oldest hybrid.

"I saw you this morning, Bulla," he teased, patting her on the back. "Don't tell me you missed me, because I wouldn't believe you."

"We ran into some villagers out there," Trunks offered, sitting down and throwing his head back.

"Yeah I felt both of your kis jump," Goten responded. "But I figured you had things under control."

"We did have it under control," her brother sighed. "But one of them spun some story about them catching you and it got her all jittery."

"No way," he chuckled, looking down at the heiress as she continued to lean her face into his shoulder. "You were worried about me, were you?"

Bulla simply gave him a warning look before dropping her arms and taking a step back.

"So what did you find?" Trunks asked, glancing at his friend while he pressed his palms to the roof tiles.

"No one's spoken to Guff once," he answered, blowing into his hands. "I've watched these fuckers all day and he just sits in his box while they scheme, plot, gossip - whatever it is they do - in the town square. I'm pretty sure he's completely oblivious as to what's going on under his nose. The one to watch though, is their mayor."

"What makes you say that?" Bulla asked, interest piqued.

"He's only left his house once," the dark-haired demi-Saiyan answered, twisting back to face the lavender-haired fighter. "To visit the inn. After about an hour, he and Mable went back to his place together and they haven't left since."

"Is that so," the heiress folded her arms and narrowed her aquamarine orbs. "When do we get to pay this guy a visit?"

"I figure we've got two options," he replied, looking between the Briefs siblings. "A, we come up with some plan to deceive him into letting us into his house so we can search for our things or B, we brute force it, hopefully find what we're looking for, and then get the fuck out of this place."

"Definitely B," Bulla tightened her arms. "My patience is gone and I don't think he'd believe anything we say anyway. One of the villagers admitted they wanted us dead, and if the mayor's in on it, he won't be happy to see us regardless."

"I say we go with option C," Trunks interjected, transferring his gaze to the large wooden gate. "We talk to Guff and see if he can help us. I don't want to have to fight these guys again. It makes us look guilty and they're too easy to kill. I don't want that on my conscience."

"Are you serious?" Bulla argued, pivoting to face her brother. "You saw that pile of corpses! These are not good people, Trunks."

"Yeah, I saw," he sighed. "But we don't know how many of them are really in on whatever's going on here. Some could be being deceived, just like that woman told you."

"I refuse to believe another word out of anyone's mouth." She lifted her nose. "No more nice earthlings, I say. Goten." Bulla looked to the older fighter. "You're going to have to be the tiebreaker."

He glanced between to the stubborn siblings sceptically. "No way. You're not making me choose between you two."

"I didn't ask you to," she scoffed, scrunching her nose. "I'm telling you to choose the better option."

After no response she began walking towards the edge of the roof. "Fine, you two go talk to Captain Oblivious and I'll deal with Thing One and Thing Two." The heiress hopped off the side and marched straight to the mayor's manor. It didn't take long to feel a strong ki coming her way.

"Wait," Goten called out, jogging to catch up with her. "I'll come with you. Trunks doesn't need help filling the guard in."

"I'm going to kick the door in," Bulla warned, already undoing the buttons on her outercoat. "Make sure they don't try to run out through some back exit."

As promised, Bulla bulldozed right through his front door as soon as she reached it, sensing for the inhabitants once she was inside.  _Upstairs._ She levitated up past the spiral staircase, finding the deceptively motherly form of their innkeeper, Mable, in one of the rooms.

"Oh God," the woman breathed, backing into the desk.

"Good idea," Bulla smirked, stalking towards her like a hungry wolf after it's prey. "Now's probably the right time to say your prayers."

"Get away from me your freak!" Mable yelled, reaching for the first thing her hands could find on the surface behind her - a scissors, it turned out - and plunging it towards the heiress.

" _Excuse me?"_  Bulla gripped her wrist easily, squeezing progressively harder until the palm opened up and dropped the improvised stake. "Don't bother trying to fight me," she informed through gritted teeth. "I'm much, much stronger than you."

"You don't know that," Mable responded, visibly shaking.

"Yes, I do," the heiress growled, inching closer. "Daddy always told me: poison is the weapon of choice for the weak. You're a coward, and a murderer." Bulla gripped the innkeeper's neck and started to squeeze. "I'm going to ask you this once. Where are our things?"

"I don't know."

"Wrong answer." She formed a ki ball in her left hand, letting it enlarge slowly while her captive's eyes grew with it.

"What  _are_  you?" Mable whispered, looking back to the heiress in disgust. "You're no earthling. We did our homework on your kind and there's no reason why all three of you should have survived that amount of toxin, especially after how much you all ate. You're animals!"

"Better." Bulla launched the ball towards the wall in front of her, causing her hostage to scream. "We're Saiyans."

" _Saiyans?"_ the innkeeper repeated, pale brows drawing together.

"I promised I would only ask once." The heiress formed another ball of energy.

"I swear I have no idea! Fitch and I only run the inn... and poison the guests. We give everything to Roykin and he deals with... the others." She was clearly getting her words out as quickly as she could. "We're not allowed to ask questions."

"Who the heck is  _Roykin?_ "

"Our mayor-"

"Bulla!"

The heiress shot around at hearing Goten's voice. Ensuring her hostage was still held firmly in her grip, Bulla flew downstairs, seeking her shipmate's ki.

"Where are you?" she called out, swivelling her head left and right. "I can't find you, but you feel close."

Suddenly a blast came through the floor in front of her and she shielded her eyes. "What's down there?" she asked her trembling captive.

"I don't know," Mable uttered, eyes wide at the sight of the impromptu hole. "I didn't know he had a basement."

"Guess we're about to find out." Bulla hopped down, using the light from an energy ball in her left hand to see her surroundings.

She found Goten, covered in dust and cobwebs while he held his palm towards the floor, illuminating the contents with his own ki. "Bulla, you should see this," he said, voice low. Keeping her grip on Mable's upper arm, she stepped over to her fellow halfling. Her eyes glossed over the assortment of unidentifiable objects in front of her. It was like a horder's treasure room - she could barely walk any direction without stepping on something.

"What am I looking at exactly?" Bulla muttered, bending down to take a closer look. She picked up a sphere shaped metal orb, about the size of a beach ball, before placing it back down and shuffling through a nearby box filled with trinkets.

"I recognise a lot of these," Mable offered, eyes trailing over the items slowly. "They're the possessions of some of our past patrons"

"Junk. Ready for the fire."

Both hybrids turned at hearing the voice. The heiress took in the obscured form of the man sitting in the darkened corner. She hadn't even noticed him when she hopped in, immediately distracted by the collection of seemingly useless items at Goten's feet.

"Roykin I presume?" she said, watching him carefully. He was average height with long white hair held in a low ponytail and wearing a dark tailored coat. Allround unremarkable, Bulla decided. He didn't answer her question either. "So you order the deaths of visitors to your village, just so that you can burn their belongings?"

"Clearly you're as intelligent as your friend over there," he scoffed, turning his head. "Those are just the leftovers."

"Don't bother, Bulla," Goten uttered, grabbing her wrist when she stomped towards the mouthy mayor. "He's just trying to get you riled up. Ignore him." She tried to pull away, but he wouldn't let go. "Don't waste your energy on him," he added, dropping his voice so the others couldn't hear. "I can tell you're still not fully recovered."

Bulla held his gaze for a few moments before letting out a breath. "Fine."  _He's right, of course. I feel like I'm on the verge of falling over._

He slowly released her arm, watching her warily. "Let's scratch around and see if we can find our things. The sooner we get out of here the better."

Bulla didn't trust either hostage, so both villagers were relegated to the sidelines and instructed to keep their mouths shut while the two hybrids got started, methodically working their way through the seemingly endless piles of boxes and memorabilia that filled the spacious room.

She threw her palm to her mouth at the tragic item in her hands - a cheap locket which opened up to show a young family with four smiling faces. Bulla quickly wiped her fingers over her cheeks before glancing to her left to see if anyone had noticed.

"Wanna give us a hint, mayor?" Goten tilted his head towards the stubborn man behind them. Unsurprisingly, he stayed quiet.

"You know, Goten," Bulla sighed, shoving yet another fruitless container away before wandering over to join him at his own box. "Maybe we should take a page out of Frieza's book for once. There's no way he'd let these fools give him the run around like this."

"Did you just say  _Frieza?_ " Roykin queried, almost in a whisper. "As in, Lord Frieza - Leader of the Planet Trade Organisation?"

"You know him then?" Goten snorted, not even bothering to look up. "Bastard's still got his reputation it seems."

"Frieza died!" the mayor declared.

"I know," the dark-haired halfling responded casually, shuffling through some clothes . "My father killed him."

" _ **What?!**_ " both villagers erupted, eyes wide with disbelief

"Hey." Bulla nudged Goten with her elbow, the ends of her lip curling. "Give credit where it's due. My brother killed him too. After the first death."

"The purple-haired earthling I spoke with last night before closing," Mable gulped. "Killed Frieza?"

The two hybrids exchanged a glance before both smirked in amusement. "A version of him, yes," the heiress answered, sticking her tongue out at the man next to her.

"Sure," Goten nodded. "But then my dad killed him again."

"With the help of mine!" Bulla interjected, bringing her face to his.

"What in heaven's name are you two talking about?!" Roykin spoke up. "Is this a joke to you? Childishly arguing about the death of the galaxy's most feared ruler?"

"No," both half-Saiyans answered, pivoting to face the flustered town mayor.

"His dad really did kill Frieza," Bulla shrugged. "Twice actually. It's almost tradition at this point. I wonder if I'll get to do it next time?" She grinned when she heard Goten fail to suppress a chuckle.

"Golden form?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Any form, buddy," she proudly proclaimed, pressing her hands to her hips. "I'll wipe the floor with him."

Simultaneously, each halfling lifted their heads towards the gaping hole in the ceiling, causing their captives to do the same, albeit probably without really knowing why.

"The prince has arrived," Goten grinned, seconds before Trunks jumped in. "And he's brought a friend."

Guff stood at the edge of the gap, peering down. "What's going on down there? I wasn't aware of any underground rooms at the mayor's manor."

"There's a lot more you weren't aware of," Bulla called out. "Join us and see for yourself."

* * *

"I never thought I'd be so happy to be in space again," Bulla sighed, sinking deep into the three-seater couch in the upstairs loft, a satisfied grin on her face while she kept her eyes closed.

After recovering their possessions and promising the townspeople that they would soon hear from Jaco or one of his fellow intergalactic patrolmen for the dastardly deeds of their corrupt mayor and his cooperatives, the three half-Saiyans spent a further five days drilling, digging and dusting as they searched for their remaining elements.

Nights were cold on the ship when it wasn't active, but it was better than the alternative - all three agreed that they were past trusting the people of Ellis. The main objective once they'd located their things was to source their ores and get out of dodge.

Once Goten uncovered the final piece, the three half-Saiyans were finally free of their ice prison and readied their vessel for take off. They didn't waste any time firing up the engine and before they knew it, Bulla, Trunks and Goten were starting the next leg of their journey.

"Even if it means you have to eat my cooking for the next ten days?" Goten teased, approaching the couch and lifting her up so he could join her in front of the TV.

Bulla was now laying on her back, her head in his lap, and opened one eye. "Dude. As far as I'm concerned, you're the best damn cook in the galaxy. For one, you've never tried to poison me," she smiled, poking him in the chin.

"Yet," he corrected, cocking an eyebrow.

The heiress let out a chuckle. "Oh yeah? You want to kill me, do you? Am I that bad?"

Without warning he grabbed at her middle, squeezing her sides while she shrieked and kicked. "You can be pretty damn awful," he laughed.

Unwilling to take the sudden assault lying down, so to speak, Bulla returned the favour, jabbing at his neck and ribs, launching a full-scale tickle fight. She was screaming with laughter as they wrestled on the couch, tickles soon evolving into swats and eventually punches. Before she knew it, Bulla and Goten were engaged in hand to hand combat and she jumped up from the sofa, racing towards the ladder. He chased after her, following the heiress into the control room when she fled away from him.

"Trunks help!" Bulla squealed, glancing behind her, face alight with childlike glee. "Your best friend is attacking me!" She paused when she turned to see her brother's sober expression. Goten caught up, wrapping his arms around her while they both looked to her brother. "What's wrong?" she giggled, tilting her head as she clutched Goten's forearms, ready to pull them away at a moment's notice to restart their game of chase. She could see her mother in the video display, equally serious.

Trunks removed his headset, keeping his gaze on his sister while she looked back to Bulma.  _What is that she's holding?_  The heiress' expression slowly straightened, eyebrows drawing together when she realised what her mother grasped between her fingers.

"Oh my God _,_ " Bulla breathed, dropping her hands.

"That fucking-" she vaguely heard Goten growl behind her. He had loosened his grip now too, but she could still feel his muscles tensing against her back.

"I'm so sorry Bulla," Bulma's voice came through the speaker. "You didn't deserve to find out this way."

" _Oh my God,_ " the heiress repeated, barely above a whisper.

Before her was a magazine, the kind she'd moaned over hundreds of times. The camera was zeroing in on a simple image - a photo of her boyfriend, the one who claimed to love her, locking lips with a girl who definitely wasn't Bulla Briefs.


	9. The Rule of Three

"Bulla…" Trunks pleaded outside her door. "C'mon, you've barely left your room since yesterday. You need to eat something."

She didn't answer.

"Can I at least come in?"

" _Fine,"_ she mumbled into her pillow. Her voice sounded strange even to her own ears. She hadn't used it since she ran out of the control room the evening before and 'locked' herself in her suite. She wasn't really locked in, of course, because none of the doors on this ship had locks, but the boys seemed to be respecting her need for space regardless.

Keeping her face buried in her pillow, she heard the sound of her door sliding open, along with her brother's footsteps approaching her bed. The mattress dipped when he sat down next to her and let out a breath.

"Sit up," he said after a few quiet moments.

Once again, she didn't respond.

"Sit up," he repeated, nudging her arm.

"Why?" she croaked, throat painfully dry.

"Because I can't hug you while you're lying down."

She opened her eyes and saw him watching her with concern. Pressing into her palm, the heiress drew in her legs and mimicked his position, letting her limbs hang over the side of her cot while she sat next to him. Her hair was loose and dishevelled and she could feel it sticking to the side of her face.

Trunks wrapped an arm around his sister's back and pulled her towards him, giving her a gentle squeeze while he leaned his mouth into the top of her head. She lowered her lids once more, feeling her eyes beginning to sting.

 _Kami, am I ever going to stop crying?_ she silently berated.

"Do you feel like talking about it?" he eventually spoke up.

"Not really," she muttered. "I feel so pathetic sobbing over him like this. He's not even remotely worth it. I must look like such an idiot."

"Not to me," he whispered. "I know exactly what you're going through."

She looked up at him, narrowing her eyes.  _Is he saying what I think he's saying?_

"Trunks," she began. "Did Melody..."

He offered her a faint smile, but she could see the hurt in his eyes and it made her heart ache.

"It was different with us," he sighed. "But it still ended up going the same way."

"She had an affair?" she uttered in disbelief.

"I can never know for sure," he looked down to the floor. "But it doesn't really matter since she fell in love with someone else."

"Oh my God, Trunks," she frowned, keeping her eyes fixed on her brother. "I'm so sorry."

He let out a chuckle. "Now's not the time to go feeling sorry for  _me,_ Bulla. I'm meant to be here for  _you_. And I am," he added. "Here for you."

She lifted her own arms to envelope his midsection. He didn't say another word, simply opting to hold her while she leaned her face into his shoulder.

After a few minutes, he turned his head to look down at her. "You know I love you, right?" he said softly.

The end of her mouth curled. "Of course you do," she sniffed. "What's not to love?"

"There she is," he grinned, rubbing his palm over her hair while he kissed her temple.

"I love you too, Trunks," Bulla whispered.

"Do you want me to kick his ass when we get back home?" he offered, pulling away and observing her while he waited for an answer.

At this, she almost let out a snort. "You know I can beat him up myself."

"Sure," he agreed, meeting her gaze playfully. "But it's the principle of the matter. He broke my baby sister's heart, so now he needs to feel some pain."

"He didn't break my heart," she poked him in the rib, feeling herself beginning to lighten up ever so slightly.

Another knock came at her door.

"Yeah?" Trunks called out.

It slid open, revealing a surprisingly serious looking Goten on the other side. "Bulma's on the line. She wants to talk to you," he said, keeping his attention on the oldest hybrid.

Trunks looked to Bulla, apparently waiting for her approval.

"It's okay, you can go," she nodded.

"You sure?"

She forced a weak smile, hoping to reassure him.

"Alright," he planted another kiss on her head before standing up and slipping past his younger counterpart.

Bulla could still sense Goten standing in the doorway watching her. Despite silently willing him to leave, she couldn't help but look up. His expression was softer than when he'd first shown up, and he seemed to have a lot racing through his mind. It hadn't missed the heiress' notice that the boys were remarkably quiet over the past day or so, despite Bulla herself being the one at the centre of the humiliation. From what she could tell, Goten spent most of his time in his room, only leaving to cook for himself and the prince and retreating as soon as they were finished eating. She couldn't even hear the sound of their voices through the ceiling like she had so many times before.

_Is it just me, or is he taking this news surprisingly hard?_

They continued to regard each other for a few moments before he finally let out a heavy breath and turned to leave.

* * *

By the second night, she was beginning to feel rather gross but still couldn't muster the effort to leave her room for anything more than a toilet break. Trunks had visited a couple of times, bringing a few things for her to nibble on every now and then, but she still didn't have much of an appetite. He reminded her to knock on his door if she needed anything, earning himself a modest smile from the heiress.

 _He can really be a sweetheart when he feels like it,_ Bulla mused lovingly.  _Or maybe it's just been the trip that's brought us together again after all this time._

She couldn't remember her brother ever showing this much attentiveness for any of her last dozen or so breakups though. Even when things ended with her 'first love' at sixteen, Trunks didn't so much as visit until two weeks later, and by then she'd already gotten over it. Moved on and found someone else to capture her attention.

Vaguely recalling her endless string of failed relationships only caused her to roll over and groan into the crack between her bed and the wall.  _I'm such a fucking lost cause_ , she chastised.  _Constantly going off with boys who are just trouble from start to finish._ It's one of the reasons she thought things would be different with Reco. He was relaxed, easy-going and always down for a good time. It never even crossed her mind to suspect him of such a thing - he seemed too interested in chasing the next rush to squander his free time seeing girls on the side. She let out a sigh.

It was late, but she could hear Goten shuffling around his room - performing katas by the sounds of it.  _I've missed hanging out with him_ , she thought to herself, much to her own surprise. Who knew that six weeks into their trip, she'd find herself so fond of the goofy half-Saiyan, or his company? It didn't hurt that his cooking had helped keep her sane for a good chunk of this journey, as much as she avoided admitting it initially.

She flipped on to her back to stare at her ceiling.  _Ugh, I need to pee again. How is this possible? I would've thought I'd cried all the water out by now._

Reluctantly, she hauled herself up and dragged her feet to her door. She was only in her t-shirt and underwear, but her sense of shame was already at unprecedented levels, so partial nudity was merely a drop in the ocean at this point.

After flushing the toilet and washing her hands she gripped either side of the basin and stared at her reflection in the mirror above it.  _Kami, I look awful,_ she noted flatly. She hadn't brushed her hair in days and her face was a sunken, splotchy mess.

Tears started falling of their own accord, as was the new routine, and before she knew it, she was on the cold floor, sobbing into her knees while she squeezed at her roots, demanding to know when she'd stop feeling like such an emotional wreck.

The bathroom door whizzed open and she soon found warm hands gliding over her back as Goten crouched down next to her, saying something she couldn't quite make out and attempting to pull her to her feet.

Once she was standing, she immediately pressed her palms to his chest and cried into the back of her hands while he wrapped his arms around her and leaned his chin to the top of her head. One hand eventually travelled to the back of her head while her other offered soothing strokes along her back.

" _I'm sorry, Bulla,"_  he breathed into her hair. " _I'm so so sorry."_

After a few minutes, the wave passed and she felt herself stabilising, much to her own relief. Even when she thought she was feeling  _okay_ , her eyes just did whatever they wanted lately and suddenly, she'd be a convulsing puddle of tears.

When she eventually peeled herself off him, Goten brought his hands up to either side of her face, expression wrought with remorse. With a sniff, she offered a sheepish smile while she rubbed her red nose with the back of her hand.

Wordlessly, he pressed his lips to get forehead and held it there before wiping another escaped tear off her cheek.

Glassy blue eyes gazed up at warm, soulful brown ones. "Thank you," she whispered before padding out of the bathroom and returning to her suite.

* * *

On the fourth morning since they'd departed Ellis, Bulla finally talked herself out of her bed and shuffled towards the bathroom, fresh towel and a clean change of clothes in hand. She soldiered through the shower's assault, giving her body a much-needed scrub down, and allowed herself to simply enjoy some level of sensation against her skin.

She was tired of moping after him. The heiress knew he didn't deserve another second of thought, but that was certainly easier said than done.  _That fucking asshole,_  she growled to herself.

Once she was finished, she turned off the tap, rung out her hair and grabbed her towel, wrapping it around herself before she exited.

Goten was in the passage when she stepped out, looking at the diagnostics tablet. He glanced up when he saw her, offering a silent nod. She gave a faint smile in return and entered her room.

After sliding her t-shirt over her head and buttoning her pants, Bulla twisted her hair into a neat bun and returned to the passageway.

"Hey," Goten greeted, apparently still busy with whatever he had been doing earlier, but opting to give the heiress his undivided attention.

"What's up." She slipped her hands into her pockets, finding herself feeling annoyingly self-conscious.

"You hungry?" he asked, eyebrows raised. "I was about to get started on breakfast."

She gave a short nod. "I can help if you want."

He reared his head before offering a smile. "Really?" he almost chuckled.

"Sure," she shrugged, trying not to feel  _too_  offended at his surprise. "I want something to do."

Bulla followed him up past the ladder and towards the kitchen. He stopped at one of the cupboards and turned to face her. "Any requests?"

"I've been craving pancakes with whipped cream for weeks." She slumped her shoulders and bit the inside of her cheek. "But I'm guessing that's a tall ask?"

"Do you know how to make them from scratch?" He raised his brows, warm Son expression already helping lift her mood.

"Yeah, you get those milk shaped bottles that have the mix in them and shake them up, right?" she asked innocently.

At this he let out a hearty laugh.

"What?" she frowned.

"That's cute. Here, I'll teach you something new." Goten proceeded to pull out a collection of capsules from one of the draws, all neatly labelled -  _dairy, eggs, fish, poultry, pork, beef, grains, breads, pasta, rice, cereal, snacks, condiments._ It went on and on.  _I love my mother,_  the heiress smiled to herself.  _She really does think of everything._

"We have all this food, and yet we've been eating eggs for breakfast nearly every day for a month and a half?" she glared at him accusingly.

"I like eggs," he smiled, letting her berating simply roll off him. "Now, we need milk, flour, butter, salt, sugar, baking powder. It probably wouldn't hurt to throw some eggs in there too." He looked up and gave her a tentative look which she responded to by rolling her eyes. "Along with some measuring cups, a whisk and a sifter."

Bulla gathered the ingredients and utensils, along with a large bowl to mix it all into. Following his instructions, she sifted the flour, added the rest of the dry ingredients and blended in the liquids while he got the stove ready.

"See those bubbles?" He pointed to the miniature craters that were forming while she stood there eagerly, spatula in hand. "That means you can flip it."

She slid her spatula underneath and took a peek. Sure enough, it looked ready so she tossed it over. "Oh my God, that smells so good," she murmured, eyes positively fixed on the contents of her frying pan.

"I'll start whipping the cream," Goten offered, pouring a rather generous amount into a tall shaker bottle.

Bulla swivelled around when she heard the strange repetitive thumping of said cream being shaken, watching him with a raised eyebrow and restrained smirk.

He gave her a wink, causing her to snort ungracefully.  _We're just as childish as each other._

Trunks climbed up the ladder, coming upon the scene of Goten furiously jerking his arm back and forth while Bulla watched in amusement.

"Finished?" the heiress asked. At that precise moment, Goten popped off the small cap and the buildup of air caused a bubble of cream to fly out, smacking Bulla right in the eye.

Her mouth fell open in shock as she speechlessly looked to her fellow hybrid. Goten returned her stunned expression before his shoulders began to shake. She couldn't help but smile too, soon beginning to feel an uncontrollable giddiness bubbling up inside. It didn't take long for her to erupt into full-fledged laughter, throwing her head back as she covered her mouth.

Goten guffawed emphatically, clutching his stomach while he leaned against the bench top. The heiress glanced at her brother, a notable curl at the end of his lip. Before long, he too let out a chortle, joining the younger halflings in their laughing fit while he approached the kitchen.

It felt like a lifetime since she'd felt this light.

Bulla wiped the cream out of her eye and licked her finger. "Delicious," she giggled.

* * *

"Too slow," Goten taunted, grinning at the two hybrids while they sat on the couch. "Try harder."

Bulla threw another skittle, which he ducked for and caught a bit too easily. Trunks tossed one immediately after to the dark-haired demi-Saiyan's right, forcing him to strafe rapidly, but he swallowed it nonetheless. Reaching for another handful of tiny drops, the heiress simply decided to begin pelting him with them.

"Hey!" he cried.

"This is way more fun," she grinned, upping the ante and flinging them even faster. Her brother seemed to like this new strategy and did the same. Soon their lounge was raining down with multi-coloured candy as Goten started to catch them and return fire.

"Ah!" Bulla squealed, grabbing a cushion to shield herself with while she continued to cast, popping the occasional red one into her mouth. Suddenly, skittles began to come in from her left - Trunks was no longer on her side. "Traitor!" Bulla declared, jumping off the sofa but keeping her padded shield.

"Sorry sis," he smiled, covering his face with his arms when she shot a few in his direction. "Every man for himself."

She made her way towards the kitchen benches for cover, knocking as many incoming missiles away with her pillow as she could. With her back pressed against the cupboards, she listened for the sound of their intergalactic warfare, covering her mouth while she suppressed her childlike giggles.

All of a sudden, all went quiet. She tilted her head towards the lounge, hoping to hear what was going on, but couldn't to pick up anything conclusive. Too late, she noticed an approaching shadow near her feet. Sharply turning her head, she realised another was coming from the other side. In no time, Trunks was gripping her ankles while Goten grabbed under her arms. She screamed and cackled simultaneously, kicking and wriggling wildly to free herself of their grasp while they carried her back to the lounge. After dumping her on the couch, both boys plunged their hands into their pockets and bombarded the heiress with hundreds of miniature sugary bullets. Her stomach was beginning to hurt, she was laughing so hard, tears streaming from her eyes.

"No fair, two against one!" she coughed, throat becoming hoarse. "Help." Finally, the assault slowed down as both boys flopped down either side of her, each catching their breath, all three wiping tears from their eyes. Bulla leaned her back into Goten's shoulder, plucked a skittle from between the sofa cushions and dropped it into her mouth as she closed her eyes and let out a large exhale. Goten lifted his arm and extended it across the spine of the couch, finding a few wayward skittles himself while Bulla rested the back of her head against his chest and pressed her feet into Trunks' thighs.

"Feel like watching something?" her brother suggested, breath still ragged. He began flicking through the selection.

"Yeah," Bulla exhaled. "I know it's late but I don't feel like going to bed yet. Also, who's going to eat all these skittles?" she questioned, rolling her head to take in the colourful mess they'd made.

"Goten," Trunks answered absently, making his choice. "Your feet are cold," he added, grabbing the throw that lived across the back of the couch and opening it across their three bodies.

"Cozy," she mumbled, letting out a yawn. "Although, you don't make the best pillow, Goten."

"Feel free to leave and go lie in your own bed anytime," he offered, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"I'm fine here." She nestled further into him, feeling herself beginning to drift off.

* * *

An unfamiliar and yet obnoxiously loud siren blared on the eighth night, waking Bulla from her slumber. The ship's voice was making an announcement, sending all of her senses on a wild spiral. Flashing lights, monotonous voices, alarms. After a few failed attempts she managed to catch the full message.

"Report to central command immediately. Unidentified object discovered. Report to central command immediately. Unidentified object discovered."

_Oh shit._

She jumped out of bed, slammed the button for her door and raced towards the control room. Goten and Trunks were already there, staring outside the main window near the console, both gazes fixed on the wide expanse. It seemed the others appreciated the sense of urgency as much as she had - all three were barely dressed. At this moment, Bulla was mildly relieved that she had made a habit of sleeping in her t-shirt since the night she was caught off guard by Goten before landing on Bhander. The aforementioned halfling was in nothing more than a pair of boxer briefs while her brother wore his baggy charcoal shorts.

"What's going on," Bulla asked, squeezing between them.

Goten pressed his palm to her shoulder and pointed into the nothingness.

"I don't-" Bulla gasped when she realised there was something small, way in the distance, coming from the left of their ship. "What is that?"

"There's more than one," was all that Trunks gave.

And there was.

Three tiny spheres, looking no bigger than the skittles they were throwing at each other two nights ago, travelling impossibly fast. Involuntarily, she held her breath when they got within what seemed like one hundred metres of their own vessel.  _Thank Kami for cloaking._

Now that they were so near, she was able to get a closer look at the pods. They were indeed remarkably compact. She couldn't imagine more that one person fitting in them at a time.  _Maybe they're not even fit for people? Maybe they're cargo pods or some sort of drone?_

"Trunks," Goten voiced, keeping his eyes on the strange vessels.

"I know," her brother responded seriously.

The heiress looked to the dark-haired halfling, smelling the rising adrenaline that was beginning to pump through his bloodstream and leak through his pores. His jaw was tense and his fist was clenched. Shifting her attention to her brother, she noted that he didn't look all that different.

"What's happening right now?" she gulped, staring up at the oldest hybrid. "What are those things? And why do they look so much like one of mom's designs?"

"Because they are," he breathed.

_What?_

"I don't understand." Her pulse was beginning to climb. Bulla couldn't help but feel dread at the sight of her two fearless companions watching with such fixation.

"Mom used the designs of those ships as the foundation for every space exploration vessel the Capsule Corporation has ever made."

"So those are from earth?" she inquired hopefully, attempting to calm herself down.

"No," Goten answered, causing her heart to drum in her ears.

Her heart all but stopped when she finally got a sense of the energies radiating from the three miniature ships as they sailed past, leaving the three stunned half-Saiyans in their wake.

Whoever these travellers were, they were powerful. Very powerful.

* * *

"So how's Clara doing?" Bulla asked, face pressed to the cushioned eye-piece.

Roughly one day's travel from their next stop, Advent, Bulla was back in the navigator's seat, using the option of manual piloting as an opportunity to keep her mind off her, still raw, break up.

"Fine, I guess," Goten shrugged while he stood next to her, watching as she commandeered their vessel.

"I haven't spoken to her in a while," she continued. "Do you know if she ended up getting that part? I can't even remember the name of the movie now, was it, like, Hold the Line?"

"Something like that," he mumbled. "Not long now until we're back on solid ground. Trunks says this next place is nothing like what we've seen before."

"Really? How so?"

"Apparently it's incredibly wealthy," he answered, leaning his folded forearms over the back of her seat. "One of the civilisations that benefit from places like Ellis and Bhander, I guess."

"Ooh, I wonder what their nightlife is like," she grinned. What she wouldn't give to have an evening of letting loose. Trunks' rules could eat it - she needed this, and she'd be damned if she didn't take the chance to party like the whole freakin' universe wasn't coming to an end.  _Speaking of Trunks,_  she silently mused. "Have you noticed a change in my brother lately?"

"How do you mean?"

"Don't you think he's different? Sort of. Like, he's less… restrained?"

"Oh, like that?" Goten muttered, resting his cheek on his wrist. "Yeah, I've noticed. I don't think I've seen him laugh as much in the past few years as I've seen him in just the last few weeks."

"Well that's because you're constantly making a fool of yourself," Bulla giggled, pulling her face out to meet his gaze. "But even outside of that, he just seems... " she paused while she considered her words. "More relaxed, I guess? Like he's feeling more comfortable in his own skin or something. He's opening up more too."

"Why do you think that is?" He pulled a piece of fluff off the top of her head.

"I don't know," she pressed her finger to her chin. "But I like it."

Suddenly the screens that circled the heiress began to flash and ding. She turned to look at them, aquamarine eyebrows drawing together. "Oh no," she breathed. "Get Trunks." She swivelled her head back to Goten's in a panic. "Quick!"

Not wasting another second, he pushed off from her chair and dashed for the passage.

Returning her face to the eye-piece and gripping the steering wheel firmly. The ship lurched to the right when she made a sharp pull, tilting herself, and the rest of their ship almost ninety degrees. Trunks entered a moment later with Goten close behind.

"What's wrong?" he voiced, eyes wide.

"Asteroid field," she squeaked, beginning to fumble at her belt so she could swap places with her brother.

"What are you doing? Stay where you are!" he asserted. "Goten strap in."

"No!" she looked up hurriedly. "You need to get us out of this."

"You're already there, keep your eyes head," he pointed to the window.

The ship jerked once more and he grabbed the armrest.

"Trunks, I can't!" she cried. "Don't make me do this. I'll kill us all." Her heart was beating so fast it felt like it was about to launch right out of her chest.

"No you won't," he told her calmly, staring right at her. "You can do this."

"Please," she begged, tears beginning to well.

Identical sets of blue eyes locked on to each other, both pairs searching the other. "Bulla," he said slowly. "I believe in you. You're a great pilot. Now get us out of here."

Time stood still, at least that's how it felt for the heiress in this very moment. After a painful swallow, she gave a nod, tapping some buttons on the rightmost display and flicking a few dials. Bulla took a deep breath and reapplied her fingers to the prongs of the steering wheel.

_Let's do this._


	10. Poor Little Rich Kids

" _Thanks." Goten slapped a few bills down on the dark wooden bar bench and picked up the two drinks. Turning back around, he passed one to the petite redhead next to him._

" _Thank you, sweetie," the woman smiled warmly, bringing her pink painted lips to the straw. "Yum! See anyone you know yet?"_

_He scanned the room, drowning out the cacophony - talking, laughing, yelling and, not to mention, head thumping music. "Nope."_

" _Aw, I'm sorry, baby," she frowned. "I feel bad dragging you to these things, but it's for a good cause, right? I'm finally starting to break into the scene! I can't believe I was actually invited to this one."_

" _Don't worry about it, Clar," he gave her a peck on the lips. "You know I'm happy to support you while you do your thing. It's important to you, so it's important to me."_

_She clutched her cocktail with both hands, eyes twinkling at the man in front of her. "How did I get so lucky finding someone like you?" she bubbled. "You're the best boyfriend in the world." Clara place her drink down at the high table they had been making their way towards and threw her arms around his neck, planting a hearty smooch on his cheek and wiping away the lipstick mark left behind. "I love you so much."_

_He turned his head to face her, a lazy grin on his face. "Love you too, baby." And went in for another kiss._

_When she pulled away, the redhead looked passed him, carefully threaded brows drawing together. "Hey, isn't that guy going out with Trunks' sister?"_

_Keeping his palm on her hip, Goten turned his head the direction she was pointing. It took a moment for him to register who she was talking about, but when he did, he dropped his hand and pivoted the rest of his body to face the man question, fist clenching._

_Taking a step towards the group of partygoers, he felt fingers encircling his wrist and looked back at his date._

" _What are you doing?" she asked apprehensively._

" _I'm going to have a word with him."_

" _Don't," she warned, arms fully extended while he pulled in the opposite direction. "Stay out of it. It's none of our business."_

" _What do you mean it's none of our business?" he replied, expression entirely serious. "He's got his hands all over some girl and I don't see Bulla anywhere."_

" _That's their drama to deal with. Don't get involved. Please." She was looking at him desperately. "I can't afford for you to make a scene. You know how important this evening is for me."_

_He held her gaze for a few moments, contemplating what the right thing to do was in such a situation. Eventually, he freed his arm of her grasp and marched towards the socialite._

_Catching him off guard, Goten grabbed the back of the man's shirt and slammed him against the wall, resting his forearm across his chest. "What are you doing?" he growled._

" _What the fuck…?" The younger patron was looking around in a daze. "Goten? What's up, man?"_

" _What are you doing?" Goten repeated._

" _What are you talking about?" He showed his palms, light brown brows creasing together._

" _Does Bulla know you're here right now?"_

" _Of course she does!" he exclaimed, eyes darting to the other guests who were starting to take note of the commotion. "Why wouldn't she?"_

" _Does she know you're currently trying to get into some other girl's pants?"_

" _What?!"_

_The halfling turned to look at the bewildered woman so unknowingly caught up in the debacle. She was staring at him, wide-eyed and frozen in place._

" _It's not like that, bro," the younger man placated. "We were just having some fun, celebrating the movie premiere, just like you and your misses." He nodded to Goten's girlfriend. Reluctantly, the demi-Saiyan rolled his head back to look at her. Clara had tears in her eyes and he could see that she was silently begging him to just stop where he was._

" _Are you fucking around behind her back?" Goten asked quietly, his voice carrying a heavy tone of warning._

" _No, of course not. I'd never do that to her, I love her."_

_Goten searched his soft-blue, downturned eyes. "I swear to God, if you are-"_

" _I'm not!" he insisted._

" _Clean up your act, or I'll tell her myself." Goten removed his arm after a few moments of contemplation, but_ _aggressively_ _shoved his finger at the man's face. Clara wrapped her arm around his waist, fruitlessly attempting to drag him away. "She deserves better than this."_

" _Oh, like you?" His expression changed from trepidation to mild amusement. "I'm sure you'd love to tell her, wouldn't you? Then you could get her all to yourself."_

" _What the fuck are you talking about?" Goten narrowed his eyes._

" _I get it," he smirked. "She's gorgeous. You've seen countless guys come and go over the years and you're pissed that you've never had the chance to fuck her."_

_The entire crowd gasped as the pretty boy fell to the floor, palm pressing into the wooden boards while he clutched his nose. "You mother-"_

_Goten could hear the familiar wails of his girlfriend coming from behind him while he stood over the crumpled form of Bulla's boyfriend, ready to take another swing at a moment's notice._

" _Oh my God, Reco!" His lady friend crouched down to inspect his face, but he simply shrugged her away._

" _Excuse me, sir." A bouncer rested his hand on Goten's shoulder. "We're going to have to ask you to leave."_

" _Fine by me," he muttered, making his way toward the exit and casting one last glance to the privileged party boy before stepping through the doors._

_The clicking of heels followed after him and he took a breath. He knew he was in for it now._

" _What the hell is wrong with you?" Clara seethed, clutching her jacket. "Do you know who that guy's father is? I could be blacklisted from the business just for being associated with you."_

_Goten ignored her and pulled out his phone, scrolling through his contacts._

" _What are you doing?!" Clara demanded_

" _Calling Bulla," he answered coolly._

_When he brought the device to his ear, it was violently smacked out of his hand, landing on the tarmac nearby._

" _Haven't you done enough?!" Her eyes were bloodshot, but that was the least of his worries right now. "What's really going on here, Goten?"_

" _What do you mean?" he asked absently, squatting down to pick up his cell and dust it off._

" _Why did you do that? We were just talking about how important tonight is and you go ahead and start a fight?"_

_He let out a breath, but refrained from responding. Her eyes were beginning to well once more. "You've never even fought for me before," her voice quivered. "But you'll fight for Trunks' sister?"_

_Goten brought both palms to his face before dragging them up to his hairline and clenching the dark strands. "For God's sake, Clara. For once in your life can you not make everything about you?"_

_She gasped, bringing her hand to her chest. "He was right, wasn't he?" she whispered. "You like her. You wouldn't even deny it when he said you secretly wanted her for yourself."_

" _Argh!" he yelled into the night sky. "This is so fucking stupid! I catch Bulla's boyfriend feeling up some other woman and I'm the one that gets the third degree?!" He brought his fingertips to his breastbone. Once again Goten pulled up the contact list on his phone._

" _Don't tell her," Clara commanded. "He wasn't doing anything you can pin him for and all you'll do is put doubt in her head every time she's not with him. Is that what you want for her?"_

_He considered her words for a moment before returning his attention to the screen. "She deserves to know."_

" _Goten." She gripped his wrist. "Let. It. Go. If you call her…" Clara stared up at him with a piercing gaze. "You're choosing her over me right now, do you realise that? My night is ruined because you care more about some girl and her dumb boyfriend than me and my career."_

_He slumped his shoulders. What was he supposed to do? Clara was right - he hadn't seen enough to really pin anything on the guy. Reco, he had been reminded by the freaked-out friend, insisted that he loved her and would never betray her. Maybe Goten was jumping the gun running straight to the heiress? Clara had a point that this sort of doubt was poisonous, and he didn't like the idea of putting Bulla through that kind of turmoil unnecessarily._

" _Baby," she brought her hand to his face tenderly. "It's her. Or me."_

* * *

Without a word, Bulla unbuckled, nudged away the swivel-head screen in front of her and disengaged the manual override. Her legs felt like jelly when she stood up in a daze and she couldn't help but press her palms to her face when she felt her brother wrap his arms around her tense form.

"You did it," he exhaled, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

Goten undid his own belts and joined them, pulling both in for a warm embrace and planting a kiss on the top of her crown.

Her head was still spinning and her heart was racing a mile a minute.  _I did it,_  she mentally affirmed.  _We're alive._ As was routine as of late, she found herself beginning to cry. But this time it wasn't out of shame or disappointment. She was shedding tears of joy. Pride at her ability to keep herself and her loved ones alive in a time of crisis.

"I couldn't have done that better myself," Trunks whispered into her ear while he stroked the back of her head. Bulla pulled away, returning his fond smile and wiping her fingers across her cheeks.

"I can't believe you made me do that," she let out a laugh, clutching her arm, still coming down from the adrenaline rush.

Goten hooked his arm around her neck while he stood behind her and clapped a hand to her shoulder. "That was one hell of a ride."

"Did your life flash before your eyes?" she giggled, pivoting to face him. "You know I promised your mother she'd get some grandkids out of you before you kicked it, so..."

He let out a snort and pressed his palm to her face, shoving her away.

"Is that how you treat the girl who just saved your life!" she exclaimed, mouth open.

"In this instance..." he grinned down at her. "Yes."

Bulla turned to face her brother once more and saw him watching Goten curiously.

"Now that my nerves are officially fried, I think I'm going to lie down," she shared, wandering towards the passage door and stepping through. When she turned back, she saw the two halflings talking quietly. Trunks had his arms folded while Goten wiped his palm over the back of his neck, casting the heiress a brief glance before returning his attention to the older hybrid.

* * *

"Hoooly shit," Bulla whispered, slowly digesting the breathtaking sights of the vast metropolis around her. She could barely register everything, so much was happening simultaneously - multiple layers of highways, ridiculously fast hovercars, levitating trains, blimps with huge screens displaying flashy advertisements, people of truly every shape and size. This city was beyond anything she could ever have imagined. "You weren't kidding when you said Advent wasn't like the others."

"Feels like home, right?" Trunks draped his arm over her shoulder, while she continued to take in her surroundings, like a child at a theme park.

"Yeah, if West City was on anabolics and growth hormone," she blurted. "How long do we get to stay here?" Bulla turned her head to gaze upon her brother, eagerness evident.

"This is our biggest stop," he answered, clearly pleased to give her the answer she was looking for. "We need fourteen individual pieces, and the place is massive, as you can see. We may be here a while."

"Yesss," she muttered, mostly to herself.  _Girl is back in the big city._

"First things first, though," he added. "We need to check the ship for damage. Everything inside came up clear but we haven't had a chance to see the hull with our own eyes."

"Okay, okay. Let's make it quick." Bulla flew up to stand on the top of their trusty carrier. "I'm dying to see this place from the inside."

* * *

Linking her arm with her brother's, Bulla could only watch in awe the bustle of alien city life around her. Nobody even glanced in their direction, everyone so was caught up in their own world and personal pressing tasks.  _I guess this is strike three,_ she smiled to herself.  _Sorry, Bulla, looks like you only appeal to douchey earth boys._

As usual, they needed to organise fuel, water, laundry services and suitable accommodation as soon as possible. Apart from sourcing their CC parts, the ship also needed minor repairs to the exterior, so their list had been mildly expanded. Bulla couldn't wait to dive into this fascinating megalopolis head first and something told her she'd be able to twist her brother's arm into letting her have a night or two out on the town.

"Goten look!" she pointed at one of the massive billboards. "That woman looks kind of like your girl, Clara. If she had tentacles for arms and yellow skin."

Trunks drew his lavender brows together in amusement before looking to the dark-haired halfling. "Bulla-"

"Yeah, she does. In a way," Goten cut in, throwing the older Saiyan a look. "Oh, there's the fuel depot." He pointed to a nearby station. "I'll deal with the tanks and catch up with you guys later."

"Shall we check out some hotels?" she bubbled, giving Goten a wave as he diverted towards the pumps.

"You're in your element right now, aren't you," Trunks teased, smirking at the excited princess while she pulled him towards a set of double glass doors.

"I'm not even going to pretend that I don't love this place already," she beamed. "Pan has no idea what she gave up on when she decided to ditch us. I'm going to hang this over her head for life."

"What a lovely girl you are," he commented before being dragged into the hotel lobby.

"Hello!" Bulla greeted enthusiastically. "How much for three rooms in this lovely establishment?" she drummed her fingers against the flawless reception desk, suddenly feeling the urge to paint her nails.

The clerk looked at the heiress for a moment, pressing her lips together. "Two hundred thousand."

"What?!" Bulla blurted, embarrassing herself in the process. "For three rooms?"

"No," the lady lifted her nose. "Each."

She looked to her brother, completely floored. He, in turn, thanked the icy woman and headed straight for the exit. Once they were outside, Bulla cast a sceptical glance at the building, attempting to figure out what was so special about the place that they could charge such ludicrous prices.

"Next!" Bulla marched over to the nearest competitor. After greeting the second hotel's receptionist with an equally high level of excitement as the first and being given an equally absurd figure, she realised they were in for an uphill battle. Apparently the high standard of living on Advent came at a price - and a rather tall one at that.

"What do we do?" she pressed her fists to her hips and tilted her head towards the sky in thought. "We've got credits, but we'll be broke in no time with those numbers."

"We should keep looking," Trunks suggested. "We could just be in the high-end part of the city without realising it. Besides, I'm pretty sure there are some stores nearby that have a few of the pieces we're after."

The heiress trailed after her brother, watching the chaotic traffic around her and almost losing her face when she stepped into the street without checking left a second time. Trunks grabbed her wrist and yanked her back just in time for her to see what was essentially a colossal wall on wheels roll through the intersection, carrying hundreds of passengers.  _Oops_ , she gulped.

Gripping her brother's arm, she followed him to a high rise complex, which he seemed to recognise as something of relevance. "This place is basically a mall-"

"Ooh!" she squealed

"-for technology," he finished, chuckling at her dramatic shift in expression once she heard the end of his sentence. "I know you find this sort of thing boring, so you don't have to join me. It may take a while since I'm hoping to find a good chunk of our parts up there."

"Thanks for the warning," she smiled. "Because I don't get off on that new tech smell the way you do." She poked her finger into his cheek, eliciting an eye roll. "I'll wander around out here, but I'll stay close, okay?"

"Keep your eyes open," he nodded before stepping inside.

Bulla was so excited about all the options, she didn't even know where to start. She spotted a small crowd some yards down and figured that was as good a place as any.

_Oh neat, an illusionist. I wonder what magic looks all the way out here._  She watched the street performer with keen intrigue and clapped along with the rest of the group when he finished his set before feeling herself being shoved against another onlooker. "Hey!" she called out in annoyance, frowning back but finding no one there.  _Jerk._ She slipped her hand into her right pocket to pull out her wallet and throw a few gratuity coins when she realised it wasn't there.

That sick feeling of dread washed over her as she slapped her palm to her pocket once more, and then the other. Sliding her hands into her jacket, she found those were empty too.  _Oh no. Did I leave it on the ship?_  The heiress recalled picking the pouch up from her desk, specifically because she knew she'd want to shop up a storm on this planet at her first opportunity.  _I know I had it_.

Turning her head sharply, she narrowed her eyes at the numerous pedestrians.  _It could be anyone_. Her pulse was beginning to build.  _We can barely afford this place as it is, I need to get my card back!_  Stepping away from the rest of audience, the heiress made a fifty-fifty choice and walked back the way she came, aquamarine orbs scanning her surroundings carefully. She noticed an alleyway nearby and poked her head in, spotting someone on the opposite end. He tilted his head back, meeting her gaze for a brief moment before launching into a sprint.

_Gotcha._

Bulla tore after him, making a concerted effort to remember as many details as possible -  _dark_   _thigh-length trench coat, collar popped, a little taller than me._  She darted through the sea of people, trying her hardest not to bump into, or trip over, anyone in the process. Her thief wasn't quite so considerate, instead, grabbing on to innocent bystanders and throwing them towards the gradually fuming heiress.

_I've had enough of this,_  she decided, taking to the air above the sidewalk and sailing after him. Gripping both of his arms as she flew overhead, she landed on the flat roof of a nearby building.

"Give it back," she demanded, clenching her fist after shoving him roughly.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he voiced, showing his palms.

"Don't mess with me," she warned. "This was my one chance to partake in a favourite past time. You don't want to get on my bad side, believe me." To add weight to her threat, she raised her ki, causing dust and debris to swirl around her.

"Okay, fine!" he instantly caved. "Take it. Take all of them!" He emptied his pockets and proceeded to throw an impossible number of purses and wallets in her direction.

"You moron! I don't want other peoples' money. Take them to the police station, or whatever you guys have here to uphold the law."

As if on cue, two uniformed locals with dull lavender skin and slits for nostrils joined the pair on the roof, jetpacks strapped to each of their backs. They had helmets on their heads with coloured transparent shields guarding their eyes.

"Stop right there, both of you," the taller of the two commanded.

"Good timing," Bulla praised, pointing to the man opposite her. "Take him in, he's got enough stolen wallets to start his own store."

"We're not here for him, ma'am," the stockier cop responded. "Flying is prohibited within the city centre. I'm afraid we'll have to take you down to the station."

"What?!" she exclaimed. "Are you kidding me? This guy's a thief! I only just got here and already I nearly lost every damn credit to my name."

"Are you resisting arrest?" One of the officers tapped the side of his helmet. She suspected he was engaging some sort of communication system, so as to call in this harmless 'crime'.

"We don't take kindly to outsiders stirring up trouble," the other cautioned. "I recommend you come with us without any further comment."

_What the heck?_  She was stumped. If she went along with them, who knows what their justice system would be like, and what sort of penalty she'd be forced to face for daring to take back what was rightfully hers - and without violence too!

Bulla sensed the approach of a familiar ki and immediately felt herself relaxing.  _Maybe he won't know what to do either, but at least I won't be dealing with this mess on my own._

"Bulla, what's going on?" Goten touched down, looking between the four individuals on the bare roof.

"I'm about to be arrested," she huffed. "And I guess you are now too, sorry."

He walked over to her, narrowing his eyes at the two policemen as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "What seems to be the problem officers?" he asked calmly.

Both stared at him, eyes visibly wide even behind their visors, not to mention the audible gulp that came from each of them. "No problem at all, general," he stated, stiff as a board. "We had no idea this young woman was affiliated with you. Please accept our apologies. "

_Come again?_

She glanced to Goten in confusion which he returned with his own baffled look. "Uh. Very well," he responded. "Have a nice day?"

When Bulla turned around to gauge the reaction of the pest that triggered this bizarre series of events, she found he was already bee-lining for the rooftop exit.  _Whatever,_  she sighed.  _I'm just glad I got my wallet back. We can take the rest to the station later._

"Have a nice day?" she giggled, raising an eyebrow at her fellow halfling.

"What was I supposed to say?" he drew his shoulders up in question. "They called me general, like I'm meant to know what that means."

"It means you're some big shot around here. Or you look like someone who is. Either way, you just got me out of a bind… so thank you," she smiled, finding his bewilderment rather endearing. "How'd you go with the fuel and water tanks?"

"Quick and painless." He patted his pants pocket. "It was all over in, like, twenty minutes. I was actually on my way to find you and Trunks when I felt your ki spike. I thought maybe some guy was harassing you or something. Didn't expect to find you on the verge of being carried away in handcuffs."

"Aw, Goten." She bopped the tip of his nose with her finger. "Were about to get all white knight for me?"

"What? As if you need me protecting you. I was coming for the entertainment," he beamed, earning himself a swat.

* * *

"That's the best we can do sir," the tight-lipped woman at the front desk declared, lifting her nose.

_Is it part of the job description to be so freakin' snobbish all the time?_  Bulla scoffed after hearing yet another disappointing suite rate.

"Give us a minute," Trunks said, turning back and looking between the two younger hybrids. "Okay, listen."

Bulla didn't like the tone he was taking. She had the feeling she wouldn't enjoy what was about to come next.

"We've been to a dozen or so hotels already and they're all saying pretty much the same thing." He paused. "There is something we can do if we want to stay in one of these places, but I'd need both of you to be on board first."

"What are you thinking?" Goten enquired, arms folded.

"How would you guys feel about sharing a room?"

"What?!" Bulla blurted.

"Okay, so that's a no." Trunks let out a breath and looked up, no doubt trying to figure out their other options.

"What about you and Goten share a room and I stay on my own?" she offered, beginning to feel little bad for giving her brother a harder time than he was already having.

"They only have one room left, and they're way cheaper than pretty much everywhere else since it was a last minute cancellation. We won't get a deal like this again."

_Dammit._

"Okay," Bulla breathed after a few moments, closing her eyes and giving a nod.

Goten gave her a sceptical look. "'Okay', as in, you heard what he said, or 'okay', like, you're fine with the idea."

"I'm okay with sharing a room with you two," she answered, trying to sound convincing.

"Are you sure?" Trunks was looking at her just as cautiously as his friend was.

"Yes. Go sign us up before I change my mind. I'm dying for a shower."

He marched over to the receptionist and soon returned with a key ring holding a strange bauble. "Follow me."

Trunks led the way through the lobby towards the glass elevator. They took the lift up to the forty-second floor, marvelling at the view of the rest of the metropolis. "Look at this place," the heiress muttered, pressing her fingertips to the transparent panel. "I've never seen so much activity before." The sun was starting to set and neon lights were beginning to flicker on. Bulla could see people stepping out of their apartments, dressed to the nines.  _God, I miss that,_  she lamented silently.  _I never realised how much I adored those nights until I couldn't have them anymore._

Once they reached their stop, Trunks took a moment to get his bearings before exiting the elevator and taking a left turn. "I think this is us," he stated, hanging the smell ball over a scanner on the door. After a moment, they heard a click and he pushed the door open.

"Whoa," Bulla uttered, taking in their suite. The room had a self-contained kitchenette, a generous hot tub sunken into the floor right in the centre, cover still on, and the lounge had a loveseat and single armchair at right angles to each other. The entire exterior wall was all window. While everything  _was_  in one room, the suite itself was huge. Bulla couldn't help but notice, however, that there was only one bed. Admittedly, it was large - larger even than a king-sized mattress on earth. She presumed they encountered some sizable patrons from time to time, but it was one bed nonetheless.

As can be expected, she seemed to be the only one to notice this minor detail, as her shipmates immediately made themselves comfortable in the living area.

Goten hit the jets for the hot tub. "May as well get this ready for later," he said on his way to the kitchen while Trunks sat on the loveseat, kicked off his boots and stretched his arms both directions along the spine.

"Uh, guys," Bulla spoke up, causing both men to face her while she pointed to the bed. "What are we doing about that?"

They rolled their heads to assess what had caught her attention. Goten cast her a quiet glance on seeing the object of her apprehension, but Trunks simply exhaled. "Let's worry about that later. I just want to relax for a while."

"Alriiight," she sang. "I'm going to wash the day off." Bulla walked to the sole door of the room and nudged it open. "Oh, baby," she beamed at the sight in front of her. Mega tub in the corner, a shower large enough for two adjacent, his and hers sinks. The walls and floors were tiled to perfection - indeed a gorgeous bathroom, fit for a princess.

Flicking open the complimentary shampoo bottle, she took a whiff.  _Ooh, fruity._

* * *

"Where are you going, all dolled up like that?" Trunks asked, leaning his head on the back of the loveseat to look at the heiress as she exited the bathroom.

"I'm giving myself the night off," she answered, fiddling with her earring.

"Is that so?" he smirked. "When did you get the dress?"

"I bought it this afternoon while I was waiting for you to finish up at the tech mall. Goten was nice enough to keep me company, weren't you Goten?" she offered a smile to the dark-haired hybrid, but he seemed to be avoiding her gaze. Or maybe he just wasn't interested in the conversation.

"Was he now?" Trunks rolled his head along to look at the aforementioned demi-Saiyan too. "Did you enjoying going shopping with my sister, buddy?" he teased.

"I wouldn't say  _with_." Goten returned, crossing his arms. "I waited outside while she did her thing."

"So you didn't have anything to with her buying that dress?" he cocked a lavender brow.

"Absolutely not."

"What's wrong with my dress?" she frowned, stepping over to assess herself in the generous mirror near the door. The garment in question went past her knees - modest by normal standards! Although it did have a slit on the left-hand side that  _maybe_  went halfway up her thigh - and hung nicely off her shoulders by a pair of spaghetti straps. It was technically red, but gave off multiple colours depending on the angle you were looking at it from and had a sweetheart neckline. It had taken her forever to finally find a dress that even mildly suited her shape, and even then they had to perform some quick alterations in store. Now she was finding out it was a dud after all?

"Nothing," Goten stated bluntly, keeping his eyes on the still-amused prince. "It's fine."

" _Just_  fine?"  _Ugh. Boys._ "Okay, whatever. Who wants to join me? Trunks?"

"I'll pass, thank you."

"Goten?" she looked to the pensive demi-Saiyan. "I know you like to go hard from every now and again. I ran into you enough times on the West City scene," she grinned.

After a few moments of staring at the back of her brother's head, he loosened his arms. "Yeah, sure."

He pulled off his t-shirt and began walking toward the bathroom.

"What's up with him?" Bulla queried once she heard the shower running.

"I dunno," her brother shrugged, rubbing both eyes with his thumb and forefinger. "You tell me."

"What were you guys talking about before I walked in?" she pried.

He didn't answer, deciding instead to flick on the TV.

Bulla stood in front of him, blocking his view. "Come with us."

"I'm good." He leaned over to look around her.

"C'mon, Trunks," she wriggled. "How long has it been since you've let loose? Besides," she added. "We're on another freaking planet. Once in a lifetime opportunity!"

"For you, maybe." He leaned the other way. "I'm not in my twenties anymore. My partying days are over."

"Psh, please," she rolled her eyes. "You and Goten went out all the time before you met Melody. It wasn't  _that_  long ago."

He looked at her dully.

"We should celebrate!" Bulla was pulling out all the stops. "We're at the halfway mark, remember? Only sixteen left to go!"

"Not quite halfway." He finally gave up and dropped back into the couch. "But yes, we're doing pretty well so far."

She reached for his hands and pulled backwards. "C'mon, old man," she whined. "We all need a mini vacation after everything we've been through. This trip has hardly gone the way we expected, wouldn't you agree?"

He looked at her briefly before letting out a breath. "I'll think about it," he finally exhaled. "Make sure you and Goten don't get separated. I don't care how strong your two are, shit still hits the fan when alcohol's involved."

"How do you know I plan on drinking?" she pressed her fingers to her waist and tilted her head.

"Because I know you," he answered blankly. "It's fine, go have fun just… try to keep your wits about you."

After waiting on the bed for twenty minutes and occasionally glancing at whatever bizarre show was in TV, Goten exited the bathroom in his towel and began shuffling through his bag. Once he'd deployed his relevant capsule, he picked out a few things and returned to the only room that provided privacy. On exiting the second time, he announced, "Sorted."

_Not the most impressive clubbing outfit,_ the heiress mused, taking in his black utility pants, black t-shirt and two-toned space boots.  _But it's not like he's got anything else. At least he smells nice._

They wordlessly exited their suite and stepped into the lift once it arrived.

"You look good," he said, breaking the silence while they waited for the elevator to hit the bottom floor. She was in the middle of fiddling with her hair in the mirror and paused, a smile breaking on her face.

"Thanks, Goten." She pivoted and prodded him in the cheek. "You're not looking too shabby yourself, mister astronaut." Bulla turned back to continue her primping. "It's amazing what a little makeup can do, right?"

"Even without it," he added, meeting her gaze in the mirror when she paused a second time. "You look good."

The lift dinged, signalling that they'd reached their desired floor. Lightly holding his arm while he kept his hands in his pockets, the two earthlings stepped into the hotel lobby to begin their evening of hedonism.


	11. Unexpected

"Wooo!" Bulla threw out her fist, shaking her head side to side while she jumped in rhythm to the strange techno music blasting around her. One after the other, she downed three more fluorescent pink shots and slammed each glass back on the glittery bar bench.

She felt a pair of hands gliding down her silky dress, along with a face nuzzling into the back of her neck. Spinning around to face him, she pulled away with a giggle when he attempted to meet her lips with his own.  _Nope, not kissing anyone tonight._  Shimmying away, she stuck out her tongue. "Thanks for the drinks. You wouldn't happen to have anything stronger, would you?"

"I might," he smirked, revealing a pair of pointy fangs. "Give me a moment. Stay where you are." Her new found friend wandered into the crowd.

Bulla glanced around, curious about the rest of her party. It didn't take her long to find Goten, dancing a few metres away, a sea of exotic women around him, although he seemed to be neutralising their advances. At just that moment, the heiress caught him lifting a dainty hand from his shoulder before continuing his bopping.  _See, now that's the kind of guy you want,_  she thought to herself.  _How long has it been since he's gotten off, and he still won't even look at another girl. Clara doesn't know how good she has it._

He caught her gaze and offered her a boyish smile. She felt herself warm at the iconic expression and gave him a wink in return. Casting her attention further along, she found her brother. He had eventually agreed to join them, and definitely seemed to be enjoying himself. Bulla couldn't help but watch in interest as he danced with a local beauty - soft purple skin, long white wavy hair and lithe limbs. The lady was all over him, and, to be fair, he was all over her too. Bulla turned away,  _Let's not watch Trunks make out with random women all night._

She felt a hand press to the small of her back and pivoted with a smile. "You're back," she smiled, taking in her handsome dance partner. He wasn't from here, from what she could tell. His skin was a pastel yellow, features sharper than the others. His hair was dark and shaggy and when he grinned, it suggested mischief. She set her sights on him the moment she walked in.

He'd told her his name was Flint, but she didn't particularly care. The heiress had no intention of seeing him again, despite his repeated attempts at getting her details. He was merely tonight's entertainment.

"Close your eyes and open your mouth," he instructed playfully.

Only too happy to oblige, she did as he said. At the last second, she reopened them when she realised he was using the opportunity to sneak a kiss. Bulla pressed her fingers to his chest and ducked, laughing as she did so. "You play dirty."

"Here." He grabbed her hand and dropped a small white pill into her palm. "Something stronger."

Pinching it between her fingers, she stuck out her tongue and held it over her open mouth.  _Down the hatch._

" **Are you nuts?** "

She felt someone grab her wrist, quickly yanking it away. "Goten?" She tilted her head in surprise. "What are you doing?"

"What are  _you_  doing?" he scolded, glaring at her with stern dark orbs.

"I'm enjoying myself." She snapped her arm out of his grasp with a frown. "Leave me alone if you're going to be fun police."

"Who are you?" Flint interjected, narrowing his eyes.

Goten glanced at him briefly before wrapping his arm around the heiress' waist and leading her towards the room's perimeter.

"We're not on earth anymore, Bulla. You have no idea what this is." He plucked the pill from her fingers and tossed it into the crowd, eliciting a whimper as she watched it sail away. "Or what sort of effect it could have on you. Not to mention." He looked to the baffled alien who was observing them from a few metres away. "You only met that guy a couple of hours ago. He could easily be trying to take advantage of you."

"So you've been watching me, have you?" She folded her arms. "I'm a big girl, Goten. I can look after myself."

"Apparently not!" he argued. "I know you're smarter than this. How could you do something so reckless?"

"Leave me alone," she grumbled, twisting around to storm off. "I need this, okay?"

"Need what?" He grabbed her arm. "To have a night you're probably going to end up regretting?"

Her blood was bubbling as she stared daggers at him.

"Don't you dare judge me," she warned through gritted teeth. "I got more than enough of that back home."

"Leave the lady alone." Flint approached, eyes on the older halfling. "She's clearly not interested."

Goten cast him another impassive glance before looking back to the heiress. "Bulla, don't do this to yourself," he cautioned, keeping his voice low. "It's dangerous."

The yellow-skinned alien placed his palm on Goten's shoulder. "Are you deaf? Step away from the girl, or you'll answer to me."

"Listen, buddy," Goten responded, removing his hand. "I'm not looking for a fight. Just leave her alone, alright? Talk to her again when she's in a better state of mind."

Bulla gasped when she saw a mustard-toned fist collide with Goten's nose. Before she knew it, she threw her own punch right at Flint's jaw, sending him to the floor. "You ass! Come on, Goten."

Now she was the one to take the older hybrid's arm and dragged him towards the exit. Once they were outside, she brought her fingers to his face, inspecting him more closely. Without the blaring music, it was a lot easier to focus.

"I don't think it's broken," she uttered, wiping the small trickle of blood and cleaning her fingers on her dress. "Lucky." Lifting her gaze, she met stormy dark orbs. Her heart took one mighty leap before she quickly stepped back. "Let's get out of here."

"Do you want to go somewhere else?" he offered, jogging to catch up with her.

"No, I think I've had enough of tonight," she murmured, crossing her arms as she marched the direction of their hotel.

"What about grabbing some food?"

She paused. It didn't sound like a bad idea actually.  _I could do with something indulgent right about now._

"What about this place?" He pointed at a restaurant directly opposite from where they were standing.

"Fine. But you're paying." Bulla stomped towards the entrance, throwing the door open before being met by the host. "Two please," she mumbled.

They were led to their table - a rather fancy one at that. It was a private two person booth with ornate upholstery. Everything inside was velvet in various deep tones of plum, wine and burgundy, with gold tassels.

"Can I get you two anything to drink?" their host offered.

Goten looked to the heiress. "Bulla?"

"I don't know, am I allowed?" She crossed her arms childishly.

He let out a sigh. "We'll get one of these, please." Goten pointed to the menu before the maître d' nodded and wandered off.

"I'm sorry for ruining your night, alright?" he frowned, brows creasing together while his shoulders slumped. "I wasn't trying to. But I couldn't sit back and watch the train wreck that was about to happen right in front of me."

She glanced back. "I get that it looked risky, but I was fine. I had that guy wrapped around my finger." Bulla slowly loosened her arms. "There was no way he was going to do anything that I didn't want him doing."

"I don't doubt that," he exhaled, interlocking his fingers on the table. "But you still don't know what was in that pill he gave you. It could have killed you for all we know." The pained look he was wearing gave her goosebumps. "We don't know how these drugs work with our bodies."

She ran her fingers through her hair and let out a long breath. "Do you think we could maybe just go home," she whispered. "I don't feel like being here anymore."

"Are you sure? You don't want to sober up a bit?"

"I am sober," she grumbled. "Why do you think I asked him for something stronger."

Goten slid out of their booth and she did the same. He held up his palm to the waiter, who was on his way back to their table with what looked to be a bottle of wine, and apologised. After exiting the establishment, they made the quiet walk back to their hotel room.

After a few minutes, Bulla looked to the sky, almost stopping in her tracks, large aquamarine orbs marvelling at the sight.  _I'm probably going to miss this most once it's all over,_  she realised. Every new planet they visited offered an entirely different experience when she'd gazed up. The stars on Advent seemed especially close and bright.

Goten hesitated when he realised she was no longer walking with him, and joined her. "Mind-blowing, isn't it?"

"Yeah," she breathed, almost overwhelmed by the beauty of the view. Her body shivered involuntarily and she soon felt an arm being wrapped around her bare shoulders. Out of the corner of her eye she discreetly glanced at her fellow hybrid, watching as he kept his own gaze high. She snaked her arm behind his back, offering a silent apology as she pulled him closer, meeting his smile with her own when he turned to look at her. Once again, she heard a single deafening beat in her ears.  _Maybe I should have let that guy kiss me..._ "Let's get back," she voiced, breaking the moment before it got too uncomfortable.

Once they reached their lodgings and stepped into the lift, both remained silent, though Bulla couldn't help but notice his he had been watching her occasionally in the large mirrors and kept her gaze intentionally averted. She felt inexplicably jittery, and was becoming increasingly self aware. After landing on the forty-second floor, she quietly walked to their suite, heels in hand, lost in thought.

As she nudged the door open, she felt Goten gently wrap his fingers around her wrist and tug her back. "What?" she asked lazily, feeling the day's events catching up with her.

He said nothing as he hooked his fingers behind her neck, thumb running over her soft cheek.  _What is he doing?_ She didn't know when, but at some point she'd stopped breathing. They stared at each other silently for a few painstaking moments before he finally closed the gap and pressed his lips to hers.

Bulla's eyes widened as she dropped her shoes and swung out her arm, smacking him right across the cheek.

Ducking into their shared room, she slammed the door behind her and pressed her back to it, heart racing a mile a minute.  _What. The. Fuck._

"Bulla," he muttered through the door.

Her eyes scanned the room, seeking what? She had no idea.

"Bulla," he repeated. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

"What's wrong with you?!" she yelled, finally finding her voice. "You are aware of how my relationship  _just_  ended, right? How can you do that to Clara?"

"I do know, I'm sorry," he pleaded through the door. "Can you let me in?"

"No!" she declared. "You can sleep outside tonight! I have no tolerance for cheaters."

"Bulla, please." The door creaked when she heard him lean against the the other side. "Let me explain."

"I'm not interested in your excuses, Goten," she fumed, becoming increasingly irate the more time she had to realise just how much he'd overstepped. "I thought you were better than that!"  _So they're all like this? Is no guy in existence capable of monogamy?_

"I want to tell you something." She could hear the resignation in his voice. "But not from the hallway."

"I guess it's not that important then," she returned bitingly, aquamarine tresses slapping at the door when she twisted to yell at it. "Save your words for your girlfriend!"

"It's over between me and Clara."

The heiress gasped.

"Did you hear me?" he asked through the door.

"Since when?" she asked sceptically, slight frown beginning to form.

"Does it matter?" he countered.

"Maybe."

"Fine," he sighed. "Since we landed on Ellis."

She let out another gasp - even bigger this time - painted, glossy mouth flying open. "Why?"

"Bulla, not right now," he exhaled. "Please."

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" she pushed, jittery orbs darting as she raced through her memories of his admittedly bizarre behaviour on that planet - even been before things went sideways.

"Why would I lie about this?"

"I can think of one reason, and it's  **in your pants**!" she answered crudely, folding her arms.

"Is that what you think of me?"

Bulla could almost picture the contortions his face was probably making right now at the cutting comment. "I don't know what to think of you!" she exclaimed. "I sure as hell never expected you to kiss me!"

He went quiet, but she could still feel his ki in the passage outside. Slowly, she pivoted on the ball of her foot and rested her fingers on the handle. After a few ticks of the suite's clock, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath and opened the hotel room door.

The two demi-Saiyans observed each other apprehensively. Goten, presumably wary of saying the wrong thing and getting himself locked out again, and Bulla, desperately trying to figure out what the heck she was doing.

The lines in his forehead were creasing as bold brows drew together. She could see him pleading with her silently, probably urging her to put the whole thing behind them.  _Well too bad,_ she responded internally.  _Because that's never going to happen._

Grabbing him by the collar, Bulla yanked the older hybrid inside, shut the door and threw her arms around his neck, crashing into him as she reunited their mouths. Immediately, she felt large, warm hands on her back, gliding over the silky fabric of her dress. Without warning, he spun the heiress around and rammed her back against the door, deepening their already wanting kiss. She let out a moan of discontent when he dragged his mouth away, only to find soft lips brushing against her jaw, slowly making their way towards her neck.

Bulla whimpered at the sensation, squirming as she realised just how much she missed such contact. Slipping her fingers up his t-shirt, she raked over his abdomen,  _Sweet kami, those abs,_ and pried the fabric upward while she rubbed her palms over his chest. He followed her cue and slung the garment overhead in one swift, well-practised motion before returning his mouth to her collarbone and working his way down, keeping her firmly pressed to the cool door while he laid a trail of desperate kisses.

She writhed beneath him while her fingers explored his bare torso, relishing the dips and ripples she had seen so many times before, both in her youth and in recent months. He'd traipsed shirtless around the ship so frequently she had almost become immune to the sight.  _Almost_.

Bulla suddenly found herself elevated when he grabbed her by the middle and lifted her off the ground, keeping a tight hold on her waist. She wrapped her legs around him and tightened her hold on his neck, moaning into his mouth when she felt fingertips digging into her hips. Carrying her towards the generously-sized mattress, Goten laid her down on her back and crawled on top of her, hands and mouth roaming eagerly. Her breathing was already ragged as she tried to make sense of what was going on between them.  _Well, right now he's_   _trying to get me naked_.

Sliding his hands over her smooth thighs and up the underside of her dress, he traced his fingers along her waist and past her rib cage, planting a string of red hot kisses along the way. She couldn't keep herself from writhing as shivers coursed through her. The fabric caught on his forearms while he made his way towards her shoulders and Bulla instinctively raised her arms as he rolled the rest up past her head, eventually freeing her of the flimsy garment and throwing it to the floor.

He took a moment to drink in her nakedness, nothing but bright stars and white moonlight reflecting off her soft curves, before leisurely lifting his gaze back up to meet her own. " _God, you're beautiful,_ " he breathed, prompting her brain to officially exit her skull. Goten began lowering his head once more, squeezing into her sides as he returned his lips to tingling flesh. All too soon, his head snapped towards the door. " **Oh shit!** "

He jumped off the mattress and frantically scanned the room before finding his t-shirt and throwing it on. After picking up her dress, he tossed it to the heiress. "Quick, he's almost here."

_What? But I don't-_

Bulla shot up and fumbled with her lone piece of civilian wear.  _Shit. Shit. Shit! Oh screw it._  She reached for her bag and dashed for the bathroom. As soon as hers closed, she heard the main room door open, along with Goten greeting her, potentially sloshed, older brother.  _Please kami, let him be drunk enough to not catch on to what just happened._

After a brisk shower, Bulla changed into her standard white tee and space pants,  _So sexy, princess,_ and returned to the central room to find Trunks and Goten talking easily in the living room.

Judging by the mildly slurred language, her brother was definitely less than sober -  _Thank Kami for small mercies._ It seemed he hadn't returned empty-handed either, and had an assortment of bottles sitting on the coffee table.

"You're back," she exhaled in greeting.

"A huh," he answered, twisting around to face her. "You two left pretty early? I was expecting you to make a night of it."

Bulla shot a glance to the dark-haired halfling. "I was pretty tired so I decided to come back home."

"Well, if you want to continue to the party in here," Trunks began. "I made some friends and they sent me on my way with these." He directed his hands towards the collection of exotic bottles.

"I could definitely do with a drink," Goten coughed, opening the bottle nearest to him and bringing it straight to his mouth.

"No glasses, cowboy?" Bulla ribbed.

"Not tonight," he muttered, keeping his eyes on the heiress while he took another swig.

Trunks twisted the cap on a second bottle and did the same. Bulla regarded the two Saiyan men, silently wondering how good of an idea it was to get plastered with her brother tonight of all nights.  _Let's find out, I guess?_

* * *

"Wait, you knew about Goten and Clara?" Bulla hiccuped.

"Of course," Trunks chastised, taking another drink. "Why wouldn't I?"

"He never told me..." She threw the aforementioned Saiyan an accusing look. He simply turned his head to stare at the wall, as if it suddenly sprouted a face.

"Why should he? It's his own business," her brother reasoned, taking another drink.

"I can think of a view situations where it would have been relevant..." She narrowed her eyes.

"Hey, hey," Goten finally interjected. "Enough about me and my love life. What about you, playboy? I see you're back to your old ways."

"Fuck off," Trunks waved his hand. "Four women is hardly a comeback."

"Four?!" Bulla blurted. "Trunks, eww!"

"Not at the same time," he moaned. "Besides, half of them weren't even from tonight."

The heiress spat out her drink, quickly bringing her palm to her mouth. "I swear to God if you tell me you've secretly been getting laid while we've been working our asses off for this stupid mission I will die on the spot."

"Rest in peace, I guess," Trunks shrugged.

Bulla screamed into her hand and slammed her bottle to the carpet next to her.

"Are you surprised?" Goten directed to the aquamarine-haired hybrid. "Have you seen your brother? Plus he's got that whole 'quiet and closed-off' thing going on."

"Oh, of course," Bulla groaned, rolling her eyes. "They eat that shit up, don't they."

"Maybe initially," Trunks grumbled as he leaned the back of his head against the wall.

Bulla paused at the throwaway comment. "Trunks," she began, causing him look at her through lowered lids. "Why did agree to come on this trip?"

"What do you mean? To get the parts for the company."

"No, I mean why did you  _really_  agree to come on this trip," she reiterated, screwing the cap on her bottle.  _I should probably stop there._

He was quiet for a few moments. "Pass," he finally voiced.

"Why do you think she left you?" she asked quietly.

"Bulla," Goten cautioned, throwing her a look. She simply returned his expression.

"I know why she left me," her brother finally exhaled. "Because I unavailable. In every sense. I didn't give her enough, so she found it somewhere else." Trunks slowly dragged his fingers through his loose, silky locks. "I fucked up."

The heiress frowned, resting a hand on his leg. "You live and breathe Capsule Corporation," she sighed. "Why? Why is it always put above everything else in your life?"

He rolled his head to look at her. "It's my very own empire," he stated simply, with a hint of resignation. "Every ounce of passion and drive I have goes into that company. I can't help myself."

"You can take the Saiyan out of Planet Vegeta, but you can never take Vegeta out of the Saiyan," she smiled sympathetically.  _My brother was born to rule._

"I get it," Goten spoke up, causing both halflings to transfer their attention to him.

"What about you Goten?" Bulla tilted her head. "Why are you here? I always assumed you were just tagging along for the hell of it. But I'm starting to think otherwise."

"I'm guessing you've figured it out by now." He brought his bottle to his lips once more.

Bulla's eyes jumped open as she glared at him in disbelief.

"No, no that!" He put up his hands. "What I mean is." He took a deep breath. "I see where Trunks is coming from. No one back home gets what it's like to be us. Half-Saiyan. Our fathers just do whatever the hell their hearts desire, but we've had to fit in and try to make regular lives for ourselves despite other…" he hesitated. "Leanings."

"Exactly," Trunks uttered, rubbing his palm over his cheek while he stared at the carpet.

Bulla went quiet as she considered the two men's admission. "I think I know what you mean," she whispered, eyebrows drawing together while she recalled innumerable nights of inexplicable risk-taking, thrill-seeking and debauchery with Goten's niece.  _Man, we've gotten wild,_ she cringed at the thought.

"Goten," she began tentatively, feeling her cheeks warm when their eyes met. "What were you looking for out here?"

"I not even sure…" he muttered after a few quiet moments, resting an arm on his raised knee while he sat on the floor next to his almost comatose best friend. "Perspective, I guess."

"Perspective on what?" She knew they were starting to cross that line again, of 'is that too personal?' but boundaries be damned. They'd already gone too far in an entirely different context hours earlier - may as well have a heart to heart while they're all in the mood to open up.

After some contemplation, he answered reluctantly. "Myself." Goten looked away, but she couldn't tear her gaze off his subtly sinking expression. "I don't know if I like the person I've become."

Bulla frowned as she quietly digested his confession. She'd never expected to hear such words from a Son. Each one of them seemed so light and carefree, unburdened by toxic tethers like self-doubt and regret. "How can you not?" Tentatively, he glanced back to her. While she'd never expected to grow so close over the course of their space voyage, Bulla couldn't deny how much she'd come to adore her brother's best friend and his endlessly endearing character. It hurt her to know that he didn't necessarily see himself in the same positive light.

"I've grown complacent," he uttered, fingers loosely gripping the neck of his bottle while he dangled it above the carpet. "Like I've forgotten how to go for what I really want."

Bulla looked to her brother, almost certain he was lights out at this point, and smiled sympathetically at the fact that the two men's plights we almost entirely opposing. On the surface.  _And yet we all have the same problem._ She closed her eyes and leaned her neck into the mattress edge _. We're struggling to meet our full potential. Forced to restrain ourselves as 'normal' earthlings when we were probably always destined for so much more._

"Can you take his legs?" she requested, pressing into her hands as she pushed herself up and made her way to the slumped form of her brother. He was lying with his shoulder against the dresser, and she suspected he wouldn't feel too great in the morning if she just left him there. As much as she liked the idea of having one less competitor for the bed, she couldn't bring herself to make him spend the night on the floor.

Sliding herself behind him, she gripped under his armpits while Goten grabbed his ankles and the two halflings carried their de-facto leader to the mattress. Bulla cleared his lengthening lavender strands from him his eyes and kissed his forehead before hopping over to the other side and sitting up straight, legs crossed. Goten joined her on the opposite end of the bed, leaning his back into the headboard while he let out a breath.

"Cozy," Goten smirked, assessing their set up.

"Don't get too comfortable," Bulla yawned, beginning to french braid her hair. "I'm sleeping on the couch. You two lovers can have the bed."

"I can take the couch," he offered, rolling his head to gaze at her lazily. "Let the prince and princess take the bed fit for royalty."

"I can't remember the last time I slept next to my brother," she smiled, looking down at the stoic man while he snored softly. "You two on the other hand." Bulla raised an eyebrow.

The dark-haired demi-Saiyan nudged her shoulder. "Yeah, yeah. You and your jokes."

The heiress shuffled down on to her stomach and rested her head onto folded arms while she scrutinized the man next to her.  _Are we just going to pretend that whole thing from earlier never happened?_

His lids were shut while he faced their shared room.

_Maybe I'll rest my eyes for just a second…_

* * *

When Bulla woke the next morning, heavy lids lifting reluctantly, she gasped at the sight of Goten's face opposite her own. Her jerk caused him to stir and soon he threw his own eyes open when he spotted startled aquamarine orbs glaring back at him. They stared at each other silently while each remained fixed to the mattress.

She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. The movement, however, caused his gaze to fall to her lips and her pulse started to climb when she realised he wasn't looking away.

Bulla heard the mattress creak as he inched towards her, stomach doing somersaults when their noses grazed. Each halfling was watching the other with palpable trepidation. She barely felt their lips brush when she heard a groan from behind her back. In a panic, Bulla brought her hands to Goten's chest and gave a harsh shove, sending him crashing to the floor with a yell.

Bulla sat upright, eyes wide as saucers and heart drumming violently while she leaned into her hands.

"What's with all the commotion?" Trunks mumbled, wiping his palm down his face as he pushed himself up and spotted a dumbfounded looking Goten on the floor next to the bed. "Your roots are showing through I see. You could have at least taken the couch if you didn't want to sleep next to my sister, man."

"Uh, yeah…" Goten muttered, climbing back to his feet with a groan, "I need a shower," and dragged himself over to the bathroom.

* * *

"Oh my God, so many people," Bulla moaned, eyes glossing over the sea of strange faces in their midst. She kept her hands in her pocket, clutching her wallet, lest she lose it to another opportunist.

The three hybrids were making their way through the saturated crowd during peak hour and the civilians were packed like sardines as they made their way home. Street food vendors were calling out and car horns were beeping every few seconds.

Trunks, Goten and Bulla had spent the entire day searching for parts and it was now heading towards evening. While not entirely fruitless, they hadn't acquired as much as they'd hoped; As it stood, they had just hit halfway - fourteen out of twenty-eight pieces in their possession.

No one would admit it, but all three were painfully hungover.  _I guess this is why Trunks was such a hardass about staying on the straight and narrow while we worked,_ Bulla begrudgingly admitted.

Movement in the corner of her eye caused her to snap her head left, followed by a sharp inhale, heart all but stopping. Flailing her hands around, she attempted to get Goten's attention, words failing her.

"What's wrong?" he asked, coming to a stop when he realised she was no longer following next to him.

She grabbed his wrist and continued to stare, prompting him to squint and seek out what had caught the heiress' attention so abruptly.

" _Trunks!"_ he called out, trying to keep his voice low.

Bulla couldn't believe her eyes. She was positively cemented to the ground - much to the other pedestrians' annoyance - as she took in the impossible sight in front of her: three men walking side-by-side, all dark-haired wearing slim fitting bodysuits and armour with remarkable resemblance to her father's. They had their backs to the three halflings giving Bulla full view of the appendage which gave her the most pause.

Behind them, each soldier was swinging a long, furry, brown tail.

"Are those..?" Trunks stared in disbelief.

"Watch where you're stopping!" a frustrated local scolded. "People are trying to walk here."

It missed her notice initially, but there was a fourth soldier in front of the original three in a different get up. He sported a white Cape, making it easy to presume that he wasn't one of them. But he definitely was.

Bulla shivered. Their power levels were too high to be anything but what she instinctively knew to be true.

These men were Saiyans. Real, true, pure-blooded Saiyans. And they were alive.

The cape-adorner was facing the opposite direction to the rest of his group, giving him full view of the gobsmacked halflings.

"He's seen us," Goten uttered.

"It's okay," Trunks responded cautiously, keeping his eyes on the squad. "It's not like they know who we are. Just turn slowly and keep walking like it's no big deal."

Bulla saw the leader's mouth move, followed by the remaining three all pivoting to face the hybrids.

_Oh my God._

Without further warning, the four soldiers began making their way towards the halflings, crowds parting naturally as the imposing figures came through.

"Trunks…" Bulla stepped back apprehensively.

Goten grabbed her hand and briskly began leading her back the way they came. When she turned her head, she found the Saiyans had picked up the pace, steadily narrowing the distance.

"Okay, fuck it," Trunks called when he swung his own head back. "Run."

All three broke into a sprint before taking to the air, racing out of the central business district.

Bulla squinted as hair swirled around her face, and she suddenly smacked into, what felt like, a brick wall. The heiress was disoriented for a brief moment until she realised what she had actually collided with and reflexively jolted backwards.

The Saiyan leader was standing in front of them with his arms folded, cape blowing in the wind. "Who are you?" He narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

The hybrids said nothing.

He was staring at Goten as he continued. "You look Saiyan."

More silence.

He floated over to the heiress, causing her to shoot a nervous look to her brother. He was the furthest away and watching the Saiyan warily.  _He's always going on about keeping a low profile,_ she reminded herself.  _He probably doesn't want these guys knowing too much. We shouldn't do anything hasty._

After edging towards her, the man took a deep inhale as he lowered his nose to her neck. Bulla shivered at the bizarre action and glanced at Goten apprehensively.

The Saiyan lifted his head. "And you," he added, looking at Bulla curiously. "Smell like one." He reached out his hand. "But I've never seen one with such-" Goten grabbed his wrist, wearing an expression that suggested the newcomer tread lightly. Instinctively, Bulla floated closer to the older hybrid, quietly wondering if he could hear how hard her heart was beating.

The two men exchanged harsh glares before the soldier broke into a smile. "You three are coming with us," he spoke gruffly.

"We're good, thanks," Trunks voiced from her far left.

"You misunderstand," the Saiyan laughed. "It's not up for discussion. I'm simply letting you know what's coming next."

The remaining soldiers appeared, encircling the three hybrids, each one wearing a devilish grin.

"Don't bother trying to resist," he continued, clearly amused by the defensive stances each hybrid was slowly taking.

" _Don't ascend unless you absolutely have to,"_  Trunks instructed, keeping his voice low.

Bulla ducked as a heavy fist flew at her face and turned to see Goten had caught it in his hand. The remaining two lackeys were taking on her brother and she rammed her knee into one's back when she spotted an opening.

Sensing the approach of yet more powerful energies, the heiress gulped when she spotted five additional Saiyan soldiers heading their way. Distracted by the incoming reinforcements, she inadvertently dropped her guard and felt an arm wrap around her neck, followed by a guttural taunt in her ear. Bulla formed a ki ball in her right hand and held it to her captor's side, eliciting a growl when it broke through the plating and burned his skin underneath.

Spinning back around to take in the scene more rigorously, Bulla saw that Goten now had four warriors after him while Trunks fought off two with another pair coming her way. Their leader simply watched from the sidelines, arms still folded while he observed the battle with great care.

Each halfling maintained their advantage however, which did not seem to miss the big boss' notice. After a few minutes, he called out, "Masks!" and all eight paused, covering their faces with a small piece of equipment they'd kept hidden inside their chest plates.

Before Bulla even had a chance to react, a hissing sound filled her ears and a cloud of smoke spread through the space between her and her fellow halflings. Within seconds she was light-headed and struggling to maintain focus.  _What's... happening?_

Mere moments later, she felt herself losing control of her motor function, unable to block the proceeding blow to her stomach or stop herself falling as she became dead weight in the sky.

The rest of the events came to her in snippets:

Trunks surrounded, head hanging heavily with his hands behind his back.

Goten thrashing around groggily, managing to free one arm which he reached out to the heiress. His eyes and hair were flickering. She faintly recalled hearing him call her name and seeing the anguish in his face before her view was suddenly blocked.

Bulla rolled her head back, seeing the dark grin of the Saiyan squad captain in front of her while she wondered how it was even possible that she was still in the air right now.  _Someone's holding me,_ she realised, feeling one arm around her shoulders while the other encircled her waist. She saw his mouth move, along with hearing something resembling words but her brain was too scrambled to understand what he was saying. The heiress groaned when he gripped her face within his left hand, frowning as he examined her hair between his fingers.

The last thing she remembered was a sharp pain at the back of her head, until all she saw was black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's where our story ends- kidding!
> 
> So after all those teases and hints we finally get to see some Saiyans. Oh and that other thing we've secretly all been waiting for happened too.


	12. II - Empire of the Son

When Bulla opened her eyes she found herself in a darkened room. Initially, she was certain it was some sort of holding cell, but as her senses adjusted, she realised there was too much furniture for this to be housing for a prisoner. There was even a lamp next to the bed, which she flicked it on.

_What the…?_

Bulla took in her strange surroundings.  _No windows,_  she noted.  _Maybe this really is a holding cell?_   _But then why is there a closet?_  She pushed herself off the bed and wandered over to it, sliding the panel open, revealing nothing more than identical sets of armour and skin suits.  _This person's wardrobe looks like my dad's_ , she mused.

Turning to inspect the rest of the space, she spotted a door on her right leading to a bathroom. There was nothing of note inside, just a bar of soap and a straight-edge razor.  _There you have it, Bulla, this is definitely a man's room._

Ducking back out, the heiress noted another door. When she pulled the handle, it was locked. She couldn't help but snort at the idea of a measly lock keeping her contained and forced the door open with a mighty kick. After knocking it right off its hinges, Bulla stepped through the threshold and immediately began sprinting down the bare hallway, desperately seeking the kis of her two shipmates. For the second time, she found herself colliding with a cool chest plate when a soldier turned the corner.

 _Ugh, Bulla,_ she scolded herself, rubbing her face to soothe the tender skin. When she opened her eyes, she let out a sharp gasp, almost losing her balance as she stumbled backwards. " _Goku_?" she uttered, aquamarine brows drawing together in confusion.

_It can't be. He looks younger, and his demeanour seems totally different._

"Goku?" he spoke gruffly, rearing his head. After a few seconds, his own eyes shot open as if something had just occurred to him. "You're coming with me." He grabbed her arm.

"Don't touch me!" she asserted, yanking it out of his grasp.

He gripped her again. "Don't play with me, kid."

She didn't flinch. "I'm stronger than I look."

The soldier jerked her closer. She could feel his forehead grazing against her own. "So am I," he warned, clenching his jaw.

"Turles." Both shot their heads up to see yet another Saiyan at the end of the passage. "Who are you hassling now?"

"I was just on my way to find you," he responded, standing up straight. "I've just figured out where the girl Auber found is from, and why there's no record of her in the system, if she's indeed one of us."

Bulla's thoughts raced while she allowed herself to be dragged over to the new arrival, quietly evaluating his appearance. He had a widow's peak, like her father, but that's where the similarities ended. This man was tall. Taller than most she had ever seen in her life, and his hair was obscene - spiky and reaching all the way to his thighs. He was an imposing figure, to put it lightly.

His own eyes narrowed once she reached him. "I know you," he muttered, although with marked uncertainty.

"No way," Bulla declared, lifting her nose. "I'd remember someone who looks as ridiculous as you."

"I know I've seen you somewhere before..." He brought his hand to her face while he scrutinised her features. She nudged his arm away, finding herself alarmed when she realised it wasn't budging.

"Does the word 'earth' jog your memory at all?" Turles smirked, watching the warrior smugly.

_How could they-?_

Bulla froze while the man threw Turles a look. "Fuck you," he growled. "Don't act like I was the only one to lose my life on that godforsaken planet."

_WHAT?!_

"For once, dear Raditz," Turles continued, smile unmoving. "I'm not taunting you. She called me Goku."

Raditz' dark orbs widened. "You!" He brought his finger to the heiress' face. "You were on that island where I found Kakarot!"

 _Kakarot?_ she gasped.  _Only daddy calls him that._

"You know what I'm talking about, don't you," he stated more than asked.

"I don't." She pulled away from his aggressively outstretched digit.

"Yes, you do." He stepped back, taking a better look at the rest of her. "I saw something flicker in your eyes just then." After a few moments, he added, "How did you give the others such trouble? You're a weakling earth woman. Your power levels were pathetic."

In a heartbeat, energy circled the heiress and she launched her fist right into his face. "How's that for pathetic?" Seeing the shock in both men's expressions, she took her opportunity and dashed the other direction.

 _Where are they?_  She frantically searched for familiar energy signatures, thankfully able to stop herself this time when a tall figure appeared in front of her.

Raditz wiped his fingers under his nostrils. "Nice swing," he sniffed.

"Where's my brother?" she demanded, expression stern.

"Brother, you say?" he nodded, apparently making a mental note. "Interesting."

_Dammit!_

"What have you done with them?" she tried again, voice beginning to lose its evenness. "Why can't I sense their energies?" Turles strolled up behind her.

"What do you mean you can't 'sense' them?" Raditz frowned.

She hesitated as she looked between the two men, each one watching her with keen interest.  _Bulla, shut up!_

"Speak, girl." Turles dug his knuckle into her back.

"You can't make me do anything." She spun around to give him a defiant stare. "I'm stronger than both of you."

"Is that so?" Raditz smiled as he folded his arms, apparently genuinely amused. "She certainly has the attitude of a Saiyan, doesn't she?" He looked to his fellow soldier.

"I swear I'll blast this entire building until I find them," she snarled. She couldn't believe the nerve of these two, throwing her into a random room and taunting her once she'd woken up, as if it was entirely acceptable behaviour to subject a stranger to.

"I would advise against that," the taller of the two men responded.

Bulla was not appreciating the smug look on his face on the slightest. "And why would I listen to you?"

Raditz placed both palms on the heiress' shoulders and steered her further down the hallway, eventually reaching a window.

Despite her earlier conviction, she couldn't stop the exhale of defeat once she looked through the transparent panel.

 _Yup, that's space,_  she sighed.

_Fuck._

* * *

_A Saiyan in their natural habitat_ , Bulla mused, staying on high alert while she watched the two men gorge themselves in the cafeteria. Well, that wasn't entirely true. Turles was gorging himself on her left. The sound of food squelching around his mouth was almost enough to kill her own sizeable appetite. Raditz, on the other hand, was watching her with folded arms while she kept her own gaze averted.

Despite her fiery introduction, they apparently didn't feel the need to throw her back into her room. In fact, they seemed more intrigued by her than anything. Bulla held her spoon to her nose sceptically, giving it a sniff while she discreetly eyed Turles.  _I watched them serve me the the same thing that animal's eating,_  she pondered apprehensively.  _According to daddy, p_ _oison isn't really their style anyway._ The heiress took a tentative sample.  _Not bad._

"Have you heard of the Saiyan race before?" Raditz finally voiced. She didn't answer, simply opting to continue with her meal. "The fact that you know my brother makes me think you do."

Bulla spat out her food. " **Goku's your** _ **brother**_ **?!** " she exclaimed, covering her mouth as her eyes darted around the caf. The rest of the room went quiet while way too many sets of dark orbs stared back at her.

"Keep dreaming, maggots!" Turles barked. "Back to your plates."

Much to the heiress' surprise, everyone did as he said, causing her to eye him with added suspicion.  _Dude's got influence._  That's when she noticed that he had a cape attached to his shoulder piece, although not white like the squad leader back on Advent. His was navy.

 _He looks so much like Goku._ She couldn't keep herself from staring at his profile.

"You and Kakarot have a child together." Bulla jumped at hearing the taller man's voice, distracting her from her quiet assessment. "He's your mate, isn't he." She transferred her attention back to Raditz, noting that he too wore a cape - red - and was still observing her carefully.

She nearly choked when she realised what he'd just said.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." She put out her hands. "Where the hell did that come from? No freaking way. That guy's almost the same age as my dad."

"The boy was yours, was he not?" Raditz readjusted in his seat, arms still folded.

"What boy? Dude." She lowered her head, glaring at him like he was still at a basic reading level. "I'm twenty-two. No kids for me yet, thank you very much."

"Twenty-two?" His eyebrows drew together in disbelief. "How is that possible? I visited your planet four decades ago, at least by earth standards. I know I saw you there that day."

She felt a pair of rough fingers on the back of her neck as Turles gripped and forced her head down. "Answer the question."

Bulla knocked his hand away and glared in warning. "I won't say it again. Keep your hands off me."

"Turles." Raditz gave a single nod and the Goku doppelganger begrudgingly returned to his meal.

After a few moments of deliberation, she decided to answer. "If you must know," she exhaled. "The woman you saw is my mother. She's friends with Goku."

"Kakarot?" Raditz clarified.

"Goku," she repeated. "The only one who calls him Kakarot is-" she cut herself off.

"Is who?"

"No one," she stalled. "He goes by Goku."  _Nice one Bulla. Just tell them your whole freakin' life story, why don't you._

They continued their meal in silence for a few more minutes before he spoke up once more. "If that earth woman is your mother, and I have reason to believe you're telling the truth, then why am I told that you fight and smell like a Saiyan?"

Self-consciously, Bulla leaned her head over to her left armpit and took a discreet whiff.  _What is he talking about?_

Blue eyes skated over the rest of the room. For a bunch of mean warriors, she had to admit they looked pretty harmless. The room was abuzz with chatter and laughter and two younger soldiers, surely no older than sixteen, were currently in a game of chase. The sexes intermingled easily and everyone seemed to be in good spirits.

_And here I thought they'd all be grouchy like my dad. Clearly he's a special case._

Thoughts of her father brought some much-needed clarity. What the heck was going on right now? Was she a prisoner to these buffoons? They weren't even attempting to keep her restrained. To be fair, she was certain she could easily break out of whatever they'd put her in, but the fact that they weren't even trying was strange, to say the least.

Raditz didn't even seem offended when she socked him earlier. In fact, she was pretty sure she saw him smile.  _This is not how I expected being a captive to go._

 _But then, what's going on with my brother and Goten?_  She still hadn't picked up even a hint of their energy signatures. Her last memory of them was from that scuffle on Advent.

_Oh Kami, what if they're still there? And I'm here all by myself with these weirdos!_

The thought was mortifying, regardless of how capable she was at keeping herself protected.

"Can I go back to my room now?" she strategically dodged his earlier question. "I'm tired."

"You mean my room," Turles corrected, ripping a piece of roasted meat right off the leg.

"What?" she blurted, feeling herself beginning to shiver.

"You were assigned to my room," he informed, his nonchalance unnerving.

"Ack!" Bulla recoiled, not even attempting to veil her disgust. "I slept in  _your_  bed?" She wiped her arms down furiously.

"We were hardly going to throw you to the dormitories," he shrugged, entirely unaffected by her offence at being subjected to his bedsheets.

"Why  _your_ room?" she whined, face still contorting.

"Would you prefer mine?" Raditz interlocked his fingers on the table with a smirk.

"How about neither!" she scoffed, pointing her index finger into her mouth, pretending to retch.

"Well, that leaves Nappa then," Turles proclaimed, food sloshing around his mouth. "The girl has spoken, Raditz."

_Nappa? Have I heard that name before?_

"Who's Nappa?" she asked, daring to feel optimistic. Perhaps Saiyan naming conventions weren't unlike many earth customs, and a name ending in an 'A' suggested the person was female?

Both men began to chuckle as Turles nudged her arm with his elbow and pointed to a giant of a man laughing raucously at a nearby table. At just that moment, he downed the last of his drink, slammed it into the cafeteria bench, and roared into his neighbour's face.

_Oh dear God._

She looked back to the two men at her table, weighing them up carefully.

 _It's surprisingly gentlemanly of them to offer up their rooms,_ she thought to herself.  _Although it's the least they could do, really._ Bulla twisted around and saw that the entire kitchen staff had stopped what they were doing to stare at her. She accidentally bumped into the man next to her in her surprise, but he simply tilted his head towards her, glancing at the heiress out of the corner of his eye.  _Wackos…_ She turned back around.  _Anyway, whoever I choose,_ she considered.  _I'm going to have to deal with them on a regular basis. They'll probably be coming and going throughout the day, getting a change of clothes, taking a shower etcetera._ Bulla let out a breath _. So how do I pick between two asshole Saiyans?_

Her gaze travelled from Turles to Raditz and back. Turles was still stuffing his face, while Raditz was pumping his chest with his fist. No doubt the barbarian swallowed something without chewing it enough times.

_Choose the one that's been less of an asshole?_

"You." She nodded to the man opposite her.

"What about me?" Raditz looked at her impassively.

"I'll take your room." She drew in a slow breath. "But I swear to God, if you try anything funny while I'm in there, I will snap your fucking dick right off."

Turles burst into gruff laughter. "I see you already know the ways of Saiyan foreplay."

Bulla caught the end of Raditz' lip twitching. "I was joking about that being an option."

"Well, you're serious about it now," she told him, giving Turles a dirty look. "Why is the choice between you three anyway?" she queried, ignoring the crude jab and taking another bite.

"We're the only ones on this ship with private quarters," Turles rasped, raising his hand to get the attention of one of the designated drink servers.

"Is that so?" She cocked a blue eyebrow, mildly amused. "And what makes you geniuses so special?"

"Nappa and I are generals," Turles answered absently, eyeing a fellow female soldier as she sauntered past their table, before rolling his head back and glancing at the heiress.

"And what about you?" Bulla wiped her greasy hands with a rag and tossed it into Raditz' plate. He looked down at it, decidedly unimpressed.

"Raditz is our leader."

She stopped chewing. And breathing. "You're the leader of the Saiyans?" she uttered in disbelief, mouth full of food.

"And?" he cocked a single dark eyebrow.

"But… You're a third class."

Both men instantly turned their heads to glare at her. "What would  _you_ know about the Saiyan class system?" Turles asked with a hint of warning.

"Nothing!" she quickly offered. "I just figured… that since Goku is considered a lower class Saiyan, you would be too?" she directed at the man opposite her.

"We're all that's left," Raditz answered after a few seconds, much to Bulla's relief. Hopefully they wouldn't dwell too long on her slip up. "All members of the royal family are classified dead."

"As it should be," she heard Turles mutter under his breath while he finished the last of his bone.

Bulla gulped.  _I_   _guess their intel isn't entirely accurate._

"So how does Goku's brother end up becoming the new Saiyan overlord?" she asked cautiously.  _I can't imagine daddy will be too impressed once he catches wind of this._ Her first thought was to deliberately hone in on their power levels, rather than gloss over it as she had done initially to establish that her own cap exceeded anyone else's.

 _Hmm._ She squinted in thought.  _There seem to be tiers, like a pyramid._ Just using the cafeteria as her sample size she realised most soldiers were mediocre at best. Perhaps on the level of the more powerful humans back on earth, if not higher. A handful were stronger still. She suspected those were the squad captains. Bulla looked to Nappa.  _Then him. He's powerful. Really powerful._ Twisting her head ever so slightly, she took in Turles.  _And this prick even more so._ Bulla then eyed Raditz suspiciously.  _I'm tempted to say he's the same as Turles, but… it's hard to be sure. He didn't even flinch when I punched him,_ she weighed.  _Plus, he didn't budge when I pushed his arm away earlier... Could they all be masking?_

Raditz glanced back at her. She could tell he was mulling something over in his own head while he regarded her, before finally speaking up. "You ask a lot of questions, don't you."

She shrugged her shoulders attempting to keep her demeanour casual. "Call me curious." She plunged her fork into her mouth.  _Shit, this is kind of good._

"Raditz is who our people wanted leading them," Turles answered from her left, pointing his, now bare, bone at the taller man. "After Bardock. He basically paved the way for his son."

Bulla gasped.  _Goten's grandfather was their leader before his uncle? ...Bardock, Turles called him._ She tried not to make it too obvious that this was pretty significant news.

Raditz pushed himself up from the table, eyes glossing over the rest of the room's inhabitants. "I'm heading off. Turles can show you the way to my suite later."

She glanced at the aforementioned Saiyan in her peripheral vision and saw he was still contentedly digging into his meal. He paused when he caught her watching him and offered an ungraceful, "What?"

The heiress rose too. "I'll come with you!" she called out, skipping through the double doors after him.

"No you won't," he told her, keeping his eyes ahead. "I need to make a call."

"Well I don't want to be left alone with your rabid general," she argued.

"You want my room and my company it seems," he smirked, tail unwrapping itself from his waist.

"That's not what I meant!" She puffed out her cheeks. "But I don't feel your grimy hands on me every five minutes, so, for now, you're the better option."

He glanced back at her for a moment before responding. "Go wander the ship or something."

"Wait." She paused, cocking her head. "I can do that?"

"Are you not familiar with what legs are for," he uttered blandly, cape swaying while he marched forward.

"Of course I am, smartass!" she bit, feeling her face redden. "But I thought I'd be on lockdown or something. I'm not exactly one of your trusty soldiers."

"Are you honestly making an argument for why I should keep you under constant supervision?" His eyebrows drew together in bemusement while he looked back at her. "I have neither the time, nor the interest in watching you all day. Perhaps you can't say the same about me."

Bulla had to suppress a scream at the steady flow of casual jabs.

"No, earthling," he finally breathed. "I will not waste time corralling you, and I don't expect any of my subordinates to either. There's plenty of us and only one of you. Do the math and stir trouble at your own peril." He stopped at a door at the end of the passage. "Now go find someone else to pester."

She could only gape at how easily he dismissed her before entering the room and closing the door in her face.  _That guy is an ass and a half! Where does he get off?_

 _Fine_. She spun on her boot.  _Time to go exploring and see if I can find traces of the others._

Bulla wandered back the way she came before following a group of Saiyans into a nearby lift. It was certainly a tight squeeze, all these broad shoulders and muscled arms from men and women alike. The heiress caught one of them gawking at her and threw a harsh glare, simply eliciting a wink from the man. She gasped at his complete lack of trepidation and snapped her head away.

She heard soon someone sniffing and recoiled when she realised a woman behind her smelling her hair. The lift could not have dinged faster, saving her from any further bubble intrusions. Bulla poured out with the rest of them, ensuring she kept her distance while they split off in their various directions.

It seemed she'd come upon a floor of soldier residences. She walked past door after door showing rows of single sleeper beds that looked awfully uncomfortable. One of the rooms was empty, so she chanced slipping in, noting twelve cots, six along each side with a little chest at the foot of every one.

There were two doors at the opposite end, so she stepped into the one of the left. Her eyes took in a string of toilet cubicles before she spotted a long urinal along the back wall and quickly shuffled out.  _Oops! Wrong one_. When she returned to the previous room to inspect the second door she immediately heard running water and spotted clouds of steam. Nothing could have prepared her for the sight of five Saiyans, fully nude, scrubbing themselves down, entirely unfazed by her sudden appearance.

The craziest part was, two of them were women! Just letting all their bits hanging out while the men did the same. There wasn't even a dividing wall or anything similar to attempt some sort of separation.

That may have been the fastest she'd ever flown.

* * *

"Is my brother around? When can I see him?" Bulla asked while she made her way down one of the many halls of this colossus of a ship.

Raditz ignored the question, nodding to a fellow soldier who saluted him as they passed. "Who was the other one? Another relative of yours?"

 _Was…?_ She planted her feet.  _And more like a relative of_ yours.

Annoyed that she still wasn't getting any answers, Bulla quietly considered how wise it was to tell Raditz the truth about his connection with the dark-haired hybrid. It may have been something she could use to her advantage, but something told her Saiyans weren't as sentimental or easily swayed by blood ties as those from her homeworld.

"A friend," she stated simply, picking up the pace once more.

"A friend?" he repeated, rolling his head to glance at her curiously while he continued forward.

"A good friend," she added, attempting to suppress the images of their all too brief, boundary-crossing make-out session.  _Can't say I've ever done_ that  _with a friend._

Apparently they reached their stop, because he paused at an entirely unremarkable door and unlocked it. With a quick inspection, she deduced that it was rather the same as Turles' quarters. Same layout - bed, closet, end table with a lamp, door leading to a bathroom.

He undid the clips on his cape and hung it up inside his closest while the heiress watched him with unexpected interest. When he began peeling off his armour and bodysuit, she looked away bashfully.

"Would you like some privacy?" she mumbled, keeping her attention on the back wall.

He looked at her quizzically before shrugging off her comment and stepping into the bathroom, not even bothering to close the door behind him when he turned on the shower.

_Do these people have no shame?_

She sat on the edge of the double bed and pressed her palms to her face, taking a deep breath while she dragged her hands up to her hairline and raked her fingers through her aquamarine locks.

 _I wonder how long they're going to keep me here? As soon as we touch ground, I'm beating all their asses,_ she silently grumbled.  _At least they're giving me my own room. Silver linings, I guess._

After what must surely have been the world's shortest shower, Raditz reentered his suite, completely bare. When Bulla realised he didn't even have Goten's poor idea of decency, she swivelled her head sharply, face turning beet red as she stifled a giggle in her hands.

"Dude!" she exclaimed, staring at the floor. "Please. I really don't want to see the Son family jewels."

_I could make an exception for one of them though..._

"What are you rattling about," he muttered dully, towelling himself down.

Making a concerted effort to distract herself, she decided to keep talking. "Why am I here?" she asked, folding her arms while she remained seated on one side of the mattress, keeping her back to him.

"That's a rather philosophical question for this late into the evening, isn't it?" he snorted at his own dumb joke while he dragged the cloth over his arms.

"Let me rephrase." Bulla clenched her jaw. "Why did your stupid soldiers knock me out and put me on this goddamn boat?" she demanded, falling to her back so she could stare at the ceiling. "What was your great plan?"

"There was no great plan," he answered. She could hear him at his wardrobe again. "You simply caught Auber's notice when eight of his men couldn't take you down. There is no history of you within our ranks and yet evidence suggests you're potentially Saiyan."

"Who cares what I am?" she moaned into her hands. "I'm obviously not part of your society."

"I agree with you." He shut the closet door. "We're no traffickers, girl. There's simply been a misunderstanding."

"A  _misunderstanding?_ " she repeated back to him, pressing into her palms as she threw him a death glare. "This is one hell of a misunderstanding! You've fucking abducted me!"

"Yes, yes." He waved her off before bringing his finger to his ear to give it a good clean.  _Ew. "_ And as soon as we reach Crest, I'll provide a space pod that will return you to that vapid planet we found you on."

"...And how long will that take?" she asked tentatively, feeling herself beginning to calm.

"Forty days, give or take."

" **Forty days?!** " she yelled, blood pressure skyrocketing once more. She really couldn't believe what she was hearing. "What the hell kind of misunderstanding leads to me being cooped up with Neanderthals for  _more than a month?_ "

"The kind where you're part of a dwindling race and make a rushed judgement while you're out retrieving last minute supplies since your ship is on the verge of departing," he answered brusquely from the other side of the room. "He suspected that you three were Saiyans who were simply lost, stuck, or unaccounted for. You wouldn't be the first." He flicked off the bathroom and main lights before approaching her.

"Remind me to thank him when I see him next," she growled, narrowing her eyes. "Auber was it? He's going straight on my Christmas card list."

"You really have got quite an attitude," he laughed as he walked towards her. "Are you sure you aren't Saiyan?"

"A big ship like this," she spoke with concerted restraint, ignoring his taunting. "And you don't have a  _single_ space pod on standby?"

"Of course we do," he responded, beginning to shuffle with the blankets behind her. "But you're delusional if you think we'll sacrifice one of them to you before we reach our base."

Bulla twisted to look at him, about to unleash all verbal hell when she stopped to observe him "What are you doing?" she asked sceptically, ensuring to keep her gaze above his neckline.

"What do you mean 'what am I doing'?" he sighed, apparently tired of her questions. "I'm getting into bed. It's time to sleep."

Bulla stared at him, dumbfounded. "You're sleeping here?" She pointed to the mattress.

"Are beds different on your planet?" he responded, though not with any real interest.

"No, I mean...If you're sleeping here then where do  _I_  sleep?" she asked, slowly realising that she may not appreciate his upcoming answer.

He looked at her as though she were completely mentally vacant.

"Here," he slowly pointed to the same mattress. "Do I need to remind you that you were the one who demanded this room?"

Her heart was beginning to pound. She thought it was weird enough living with Goten on the ship, and she had known him all her life. Now she found herself sharing a freaking room with a guy she met a few hours ago? Somehow she allowed herself to believe that he was giving his suite up for her, merely popping in every now and then to use his personal bathroom or retrieve his things.

She could feel herself wanting to scream.

"You expect me." She pressed her fingers to her breastbone. "A young woman who has been apprehended by you and your lackeys against her will, to sleep next to you - naked! May I add - on our very first day meeting, and be  _fine_ with it?"

He didn't seem to see a problem. "You can feel free to sleep nude too if it suits you."

This time she did scream, before throwing the nearest thing at his face she could find - a boot, unfortunately. Something heavier would have been more satisfying. "You're a pig." She stormed over to the door.

"I can guarantee you, you won't have a better time out there," he called out.

"Do you not have any women's only dorms?" she fumed, fists clenched while she stood in the open threshold.

"Why would we?" The question was so barefaced she could hardly believe her ears. "There's no need for us to separate the sexes."

"For decency, perhaps?!"  _How is this not obvious?_

He let out a hearty chuckle. "The women in our ranks are no more decent than anyone else, girl. Join them if you wish. I don't care. Be warned though, I've heard murmurings that you've caught a few eyes."

"Ugh!" she groaned, slamming the door closed.  _I suppose one gross Saiyan is better than a whole swarm of them._  She marched over to his bed and grabbed the pillow, yanking his coverings at the same time.

"What are you doing now, you restless imp?"

"Setting myself up on your floor!" she declared in a huff, dropping to her knees while she folded the blanket in half, allowing it to serve as both sheet and comforter.

"What strange people," she heard him mumble to himself while he walked over to his closet to retrieve another blanket.

She decided to let his comment go, now entirely over interacting with him. While she could concede that his intentions hardly seemed lecherous, it didn't make it any easier dealing with someone who was so blind to the comfortability levels of others.

_This guy's a sexual harassment case waiting to happen. Where's their HR department?_

Before she knew it, Bulla could hear the sound of his soft snoring filling the room, only adding to her annoyance at the unfazed Saiyan.

 _May as well try to get some rest too,_ she sighed.  _Hopefully tomorrow there'll be more answers._

* * *

_Ugh,_ Bulla soothed her aching shoulder.  _Reduced to lying on the floor like a peasant. How the mighty have fallen._ She pushed herself up and rubbed her eye, longing for a good teeth brushing.

Her roommate was still asleep, from what she could tell, and she found herself curious. Ensuring to stay quiet, she pushed herself up and lightly stepped over to his side of the bed. Thankfully, the sheets were covering him from the waist down.

"I wouldn't try anything if I were you," he cautioned, lifting a lid.

"Light sleeper?" she smirked, flicking on his lamp.

"You learn to sleep with one eye open in Frieza's ranks," he muttered.

Bulla paused. "You know Frieza?"

Raditz opened both eyes at the question. "That's one way to put it." He grabbed the top sheet and threw it off, bringing his feet to the floor.

The heiress abruptly turned her head, cheeks once again warming at his nonchalance.  _God, how many times a day am I going to have to dodge seeing this guy's dick?_

"I worked for the bastard for most of my life," he added, standing tall and making his way towards the closet. "The first one, at least."

Bulla failed to suppress the gasp that came at this new piece of info.  _I wonder if Raditz knew daddy?_ He looked back at her, observing her expression carefully, but didn't say anything further while he pulled on his black bodysuit, much to her relief.

"This surprises you?" he finally commented, slipping one arm through his chest piece, along with his head, followed by the other limb.

 _It looks a lot like the one mom showed me once from back when daddy worked for Frieza too,_ she noted.  _Except his has that hole through the heart from when Frieza killed him._

"Uh, yeah," she mumbled, sitting down on the mattress while she reached for a believable excuse. Eventually, she decided to just distract him with another question. "So I guess you guys don't do his dirty work anymore, huh?"

"Our days of being Frieza's dogs are over," he answered with a hint of bitterness she had yet to witness thus far as he secured his cape to the shoulders. "I'd rather return to the afterlife than perform a single deed in his name ever again."

"So does that mean you're good guys now?" Bulla swung around to watch him curiously, head tilted while she attempted to gauge him in a new light.

"What a childish notion," he laughed, pausing to look at her in amusement while he readjusted his shoulder straps. "You really are one of those feeble-minded earthlings, aren't you?"

Bulla scoffed at the dig. "You don't have to be an ass about it!" she called out when he stepped into his bathroom to finish getting ready for the new day.

"There is no 'good', nor 'bad', girl." He popped back out, waltzing through the suite while he towelled his face. "There's simply doing what needs to be done."

Once again feeling her patience wearing thin at the unrefined beast of a Saiyan, Bulla changed the subject. "What have you done with the two men I was travelling with?" she asked for a third time, realising that she wasn't any closer to being able to establish  _anything_  about these brutish apes. Suddenly, she jumped up from the bed, aquamarine orbs widening as a sick realisation shuddered through her. "I swear to God, if I hear of anything having happened to either of those two," she warned, poking her finger into his chest plate. "I will kill you myself."

Expecting an equally threatening retort, Bulla was surprised to see a curl at the end of his mouth. Lifting his meaty hand, Raditz tilted her jaw upward and pressed his thumb to her chin. She could feel the fire in her belly rising.

"I like you," he smiled.


	13. What's in a Face?

After helping herself to Raditz' shower and drying off, Bulla washed her underwear in his sink and discreetly hung it up behind the bathroom door.  _You're my only pair left, little buddy. Serve me well._ She pulled on her CC pants and t-shirt, the last vestiges of her normal life, and lamented the loss of her jacket. She'd woken up without it - along with the wallet it contained - and seemed to have vague recollections of losing it during the scuffle.  _Goodbye, money._

Once she reentered his room, she sensed Raditz' ki in the passage outside the suite, along with another just as powerful.  _Turles_? They were talking, from what she could tell. Their deep, rumbling voices carrying to her keen ears. Quietly, she stepped over to the door and cupped her hand to hear more easily.

"What… doing, Raditz…"

"... patient... interesting."

"... waste..."

"Scent… us… own."

"...bed...kill"

Bulla jumped back, eyes wide in alarm.  _What is Turles saying about killing? Does he mean_ _ **me?**_

"... harmless against... don't be…"

"Fine… Kaiser… your call."

And then the two energies went their separate ways.

She waited a few minutes, mulling over what she'd managed to pick up, but found herself unable to draw any conclusions.

With Raditz off doing whatever is he did, Bulla took the chance to properly familiarise herself with her new surroundings. The first thing she tried was opening his bedside drawer.  _What's this?_ She found a strange gadget, half of it was white and chunky while the other half was slim with transparent, coloured Perspex.  _Looks like that weird device the Saiyans on Advent wore on their faces,_ she realised. When she picked it up, it began making a series of beeps, causing her to drop it in a hurry and slam the drawer closed.

 _Next?_ she pondered, collecting herself once again.  _Closet?_ Like Turles, there was nothing of note. Just rows of the skin suits and spare chest armours, although while Turles preferred the full body variety, it seemed Raditz was a fan of the sleeveless look. Bulla glanced around, trying to spy any other pieces of furniture that could be harbouring insight into these bizarre warriors.  _And hopefully help me figure out what's happened to Trunks and Goten._ Considering how nonchalant they were about keeping her alive, she had to believe the others were too.

Her stomach started to groan, prompting her to look at the main door.  _Can't avoid those guys forever_ , she exhaled.

On exiting his suite, the heiress began making her way to the cafeteria but drew to a sudden halt when she came upon a low-ranking soldier being thrown into the hallway wall, feet dangling off the ground while a spiky-haired man with a navy cape had him pressed against it, teeth gritted. She stared, wide-eyed, at the spectacle, causing both men to twist their heads and watch her in turn. Pivoting on her heel, she wordlessly proceeded down the adjacent passage.  _Nope, don't want any part of that, thank you._

"Hey you," she heard Turles call out, causing her to flinch as she picked up the pace. "Girl!"

_Faster._

She could hear him jogging after her and reluctantly swivelled around, feeling herself shiver once again at his unfathomable resemblance to Pan's grandfather.

"Yes?" she spoke flatly, taking the chance to examine the rest of his armour. Like Raditz, it resembled her father's old chest piece, but with gold shoulder straps and a gold guard at the stomach. The remainder was white.

"Come with me," he instructed, extending his arm and gesturing with his fingers.

She gave him a sceptical look. "Why?"

"Nappa wants to meet you."

"I'd rather not." She lifted her nose and took a step away from the abrasive Saiyan.

"Too bad." He gripped her arm, which she quickly yanked away with a scoff.

"What have I said about keeping your hands to yourself?" she warned, expression stern, lips pressed.

He glared back with equal disdain before his nose twitched and eyes dropped all within the same heartbeat. Slowly he leaned in on an inhale, causing her to back away hurriedly. "Ack! Stop!" she scolded, hugging her arms to herself in disgust. "What is  _with_ you people?"

"Raditz and Auber were right," he muttered, completely ignoring her freak out while his eyes tensed in suspicion.

"About what?" She was still watching him with disapproval.

"You really do smell like a Saiyan..." He was watching her right back, entirely perplexed. "Who are you?"

"I already told you guys," she answered with building annoyance. "I'm an Earthling."

"No." He shook his head and jabbed his finger into her sternum. "You said your  _mother_ was an Earthling."

Not a moment later, Nappa turned the corner, lumbering and boorish. "There's the new vixen," he announced gruffly. "Look at that scowl! You've always had a way with the ladies, haven't you Turles?" He laughed so gaudily it made her ears hurt.

"Nappa," Turles spoke, keeping his attention on the heiress. "Smell her." He pointed to the markedly apprehensive princess.

Nappa stomped over, apparently finding the request completely natural, and lowered his head, nostrils flaring while he edged towards her. "No!" Bulla exclaimed, pressing her palms into his chest plate and pulling back as far as she could while sinking into the wall. "No more sniffing Bulla!" She resisted shoving him away, lest she bring even more attention to her inhuman strength.

"What are you two imbeciles doing?" All three turned their heads to see Raditz, red cape flapping as he strode towards them.

"Inspecting the new addition," Nappa answered, eyeing her locks. After placing his palm on her shoulder, he pried her off the wall and peeked behind her.

"Do you mind?!" she yelled, face turning red while she slid past him and out of his grasp, becoming increasingly overwhelmed.

"Where's your tail?" he asked innocently, seemingly unaware of his offensive behaviour.

"I don't have one!" she shrieked, fists clenching at her sides while she battled to keep her temper under control.  _I have half a mind to maim all three of them right now._

"It doesn't make any sense," Nappa asserted, standing tall and folding his arms. "Her colouring isn't remotely Saiyan and she doesn't even have a tail. She can't be one of us."

"What did you say your name was?" Turles queried.

"Bulla." She crossed her arms once more, making sure to keep her distance from the two brutes.

"Even her name isn't Saiyan," Nappa proclaimed, glancing to their leader.

"And yet..." Raditz gave an exaggerated shrug. "Like mine, your senses are telling you otherwise: The girl is almost certainly Saiyan."

" **Stop!** " Bulla erupted. "No one on this ship has an ounce of manners, I swear to God! Getting in my personal space, smelling me like I'm fresh out of the oven, talking about me like I'm not standing  _right here._ Ugh!" She spun around and began marching Raditz' direction.

"Where are you off to?" He lazily rolled his head as she stormed past.

"Anywhere that's far from you barbarians," she declared, her growing aquamarine tresses flying out behind her. "Someone tell me who's behind your revival so I can tell them a thing or two."

"You're too late for that," she heard Turles call out behind her. "We've already killed him."

Bulla stopped in her tracks, sure that she'd misheard. "Did you just say you  _killed_  the person who revived you?" She cocked her head as she pivoted to face them once more.

All three looked at her without a hint of agitation.

"Who are the heck are you guys?"

* * *

 _I don't get it,_  Bulla grumbled to herself as she bit into a piece of patty.  _Why would they bring me here so forcefully and then just let me wander around of my own volition? They know I'm not weak. Who knows what sort of shit I could stir if left to my own devices?_

Her eyes glossed over the rest of the room. The cafeteria wasn't as packed as it was the day before, leading her to suspect she was eating at the tail end of breakfast. Regardless, there were still a few soldiers huddled together, talking and laughing amongst themselves.

Bulla couldn't help but feel her mood sink even further. This was the first meal she'd had by herself in close to two months. Who would've thought she'd grow to find something as simple as sharing a meal with her brother and Goten to be such a cherished experience _? God, I hope they're okay._ Her eyes started to sting.  _I already miss them and it's barely been twenty-four hours since I woke up on this thing._ She nudged her tray away and leaned her forehead to her arms with a sigh.

 _It's not the same eating without Goten trying to steal something from my plate._ She lifted her head and rested her chin on her wrist.  _What was with him that night?_ An involuntary shiver ran through her.  _Whatever it was-_

Her thoughts were interrupted when she sensed an unfamiliar energy approach her table. Without moving her head, she glanced out of the corner of her eye, tensing when she felt their thigh brush up against her own.  _Jeez, it's like none of them have ever heard of personal space._  She shimmied away. "Can I help you?" Bulla mumbled, keeping her gaze averted.

"Yeah, you can," a woman's voice hit her ears. "What's your deal?"

"My deal?" Bulla responded dully. She smacked the soldier's hand away when she felt a collection of hair strands being lifted from her shoulder. "Please leave me alone," she uttered. "I've already been manhandled enough today by your generals."

"Nappa too, eh?" the woman smirked. "I see what's going on now. I guess it's true then." And with that, she left as casually as she came.

 _Whatever,_ Bulla groaned, trying to remember where her thoughts were headed before she was rudely interrupted.  _Right… Goten,_  she recalled, absently glancing to the double doors. For a brief second, her heart leapt when they were pushed open and she saw his profile edge through,  _Goten!_  before looking away in disappointment when she realised it was one of the aforementioned generals who sauntered in instead.  _Not Goten._

Bulla watched as Turles strolled through, heading past the group of soldiers before one of them called out to him. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but he glanced over to her, immediately putting her on guard.  _Stay away from me, you caveman._ One of the women began to laugh, though he didn't look amused himself. The heiress had to admit she was intrigued by the sight, watching as these brutes conversed like normal people.  _I wonder what Saiyans even talk about?_ All six suddenly turned their heads to observe her.

Bulla gulped.  _Me, apparently?_

Figuring this was as good a time as any to make herself scarce, she picked up her tray and tipped the rest of the contents into the bin before making a brisk exit, feeling six sets of bottomless black orbs staring into her back.

Begrudgingly she sought Raditz ki, once again reminded that he seemed to be the only one on this ship who was preoccupied enough to  _not_  make her feel like a mannequin on display. His energy led her to the same door from yesterday - when he needed to make his 'call'. She knocked and only had to wait a couple of seconds before it flew open.

"Wha-" He reared his head when he saw who was on the other side. "You? What do you want?"

"I'm bored," she told him, suddenly feeling six years old again. "What do you guys do for fun around here?"

He began closing the door but she blocked it with her foot and invited herself inside.

"Get out," he commanded.

"No." She was already distractedly taking in the sights. "Besides." Bulla offered a saccharine smile. "I thought you liked me." They appeared to be in what she could only describe as an office, although she was certain no self-respecting Saiyan would ever admit to having one. There was a metal-alloy desk opposite the doorway, covered in junk. In addition, she spied shelves filled with foreign objects she couldn't recognise. His chair was piled high with assorted tech too, so she swept her arm across his desk and sat on it while he watched her make herself comfortable.

He didn't seem interested in arguing, so simply resumed whatever it is he was busy with before.

"You're not like the others," Bulla commented, causing him to cast her a suspicious glance.

She was hoping he'd give an idea as to why, but all he said was, "I can't afford to be."

"So what's the deal with that thing you said to Turles the yesterday?" she asked after a few minutes of silence, swinging her legs while he shuffled through a pile of gadgets, apparently seeking something.  _Maybe if you weren't such an untidy savage you'd have an easier time finding your shit,_ she silently berated.

"What thing?" he muttered, opening the drawer left of her fingers and pawing through the contents before slamming it shut again.

"The thing about dying on earth."

He glanced up at her, expression flat. "Are all earthlings this insufferable?"

"Please. I'm a delight." She blew her fringe out of her eyes. "So back to the question."

He paused and let out an exasperated breath while he gazed back at her. "I died on earth. That's the story." Raditz continued scratching through his shelves, tossing yet more nameless items to the floor.

"How did you die?" she persisted, not letting his clipped response sway her curiosity in the slightest.

"I allowed Kakarot to get the upper hand and a Namekian killed me with a single beam through the chest." Disgust crept onto his features.

"Piccolo killed someone?!" Bulla blurted, eyes wide while she gripped the edge of the desk and stared at him in disbelief. "No way..." she uttered under her breath. "I knew he was a fighter once upon a time, but I can't imagine that guy actually hurting anyone."  _He was basically my and Pan's nanny when Trunks and Goten didn't feel like watching over us,_ she recalled fondly.  _Which was pretty much all the time._

"I was weak back then," he added, tail flicking out behind him. "And complacent. Being given a second chance at life changes your perspective on things."

"You must have been a real prick if you got Piccolo mad enough to murder you." She narrowed her eyes, wondering about the true character of the man she had found herself sharing unexpected space with. When it came down to it, she knew next to nothing about him, except for the fact that she could  _probably_  defend herself against him if push came to shove. The heiress was still mildly unnerved about her observation about the man from the previous day, however. "What did you do to get yourself killed?"

"I attempted to recruit Kakarot as the fourth member of our squad," Raditz answered, folding his arms and halting his search once more. "We were essentially the only Saiyans left, at the time, and he could have made a valuable addition to our team."

Bulla quietly inhaled on hearing this little piece of information. She was well aware that her father hadn't always been one of the earth's great defenders, and originally began his working life in space under the infamous tyrant, Lord Frieza. This story was beginning to sound suspiciously consistent with his own. Slowly, she asked her next question, ensuring to keep her voice neutral. "Who made up the rest of your squad?"

"You've already met one of them," he answered dully, dark orbs beginning to gloss over the room's contents as he slowly became distracted by his earlier task. "Nappa."

Bulla gulped. "...Who was the other?"

He rolled his head back to gaze at her. "An arrogant piece of shit who also happened to be our prince," he answered with slight agitation. She closed her eyes slowly, keeping her breath steady. "Named Vegeta."

 _Oh my God, he served with my father,_  she exhaled through her nose.  _Raditz knows daddy. Like, really knows him._

When she lifted her lids, the heiress found he was watching her carefully, full dark brows drawing together in curiosity.

"Where are you going?" He held out his arm when she quietly slipped off the cool surface and made her way towards the door.

"I need to pee," she mumbled. She knew she'd risk giving herself away if she stayed. The shock at hearing her father's name on some random Saiyan's lips was enough to give her goosebumps, and something told her it was in her best interest to keep her identity a secret for as long as she could. Who knew how they'd react to hearing that she was indeed half-Saiyan, thanks to none other than their old 'piece of shit' prince.

She opted to keep her head down and mouth shut for the rest of the day.

* * *

Bulla leaned into the rails that bordered the narrow grating she was standing over, eyes closed while she took a slow inhale. The low drum of churning machinery filled the room, producing enough ambient noise to soothe her erratic mood. Since discovering it a few days before, the engine room had become a refuge of sorts, giving her a place to be truly isolated when she needed her space.

What an absurd situation she had found herself in, she pondered for the thousandth time: the unlikely, accidental captive of her father's old squadmates. Her mother had hinted more than once over the years that there was a painstaking 'breaking in' period when it came to domesticating her alien father, and Bulla couldn't imagine what sort of trouble she was in for, being on a ship full of them for the next month. While she had always happily embraced her useless title of Saiyan Princess, she never expected to actually come face to face with another member of the extinct race out in the wild.  _Wild._ Yes, that was the perfect way to describe them. They were civilised enough to operate as a functional society, apparently, but they may as well have been wild animals as far as she was concerned. They lacked any semblance of refinement.

 _Unisex everything,_ she shuddered.  _Even showers!_  As frustrating as her new living arrangement with Raditz was, it was definitely one of the best scenarios she could ask for, given the circumstances.

_How did daddy turn out so decent?_

She ran her palm over the smooth bodysuit covering her arm. Eventually, the heiress had been issued her very own uniform since the Saiyans on Advent weren't considerate enough to kidnap her with the rest of her belongings, and her CC gear was beginning to feel a bit stale. In all her years, her father could never convince her to wear anything resembling his own work-out get up, and yet here she was, dressed in what was essentially Lycra from neck to ankle while she adorned a chest plate just like Raditz'. She wasn't given a cape, for obvious reasons, but that didn't stop her from making the best damn argument she could for one anyway.

Bulla let out an audible groan when she felt a powerful ki slowly descending into the bowels of the ship to join her. When the elevator doors opened, she kept her back to it. "Yes, Turles?" she greeted despondently.

"Recognise the sound of my footsteps already?" She could tell he was smiling through his voice alone, and resented having already picked up such idiosyncrasies as he came to a stop behind her.

She kept her attention on the hypnotic cycles of colossal pistons. "Why are you here?"

"Raditz wanted me to find you," he answered, unfazed.

Bulla twisted around to rest her elbows against the rails while she leaned backwards. "And do you always do what Raditz tells you to? What a good, obedient Saiyan." She didn't miss the fleeting eye twitch at this taunt.  _Ooh, weak spot._  She smiled to herself at discovering this little curiosity.

"Don't test me," he warned, folding his arms. "I have no problem offloading you before we've reached our stop. One less mouth to feed, one less thorn in my side."

Feeling bold, the heiress raised an eyebrow. "And how would your master feel about that? I don't think you have it in you to go against your boss' word."

She inhaled sharply when he flickered in and out of sight, appearing right in front of her before she even had a chance to follow his movements. In an instant, she felt his chest-plate pressing into her own while he had her squashed against the metal barrier, his fingers gripping the rail either side of her while he pressured her backwards over it.

"I wouldn't be too sure if I was you." He was indeed smiling, but not kindly. The way his lip was curling gave her goosebumps. "Before I died and joined the rest of the Saiyan army I was my own man, leading my own squad and going my own way."

 _So much like Goku,_  she couldn't help but frown again at his appearance.  _But there's not even an ounce of him in this guy._  The volatility with which he was glaring at her hurt her heart - she could never imagine being on the receiving end of such hostility from someone who so closely resembled one of her favourite people.

"Then why are you working under anyone now?" she asked, realising that the anarchistic look in his eyes may have been completely genuine.  _Yeah, this guy's definitely a wild card._

"Because I'm not an idiot," he spat, finally releasing his grasp and taking a step back. "When I came back I had nothing. No men, no resources. My crimes against the royal family were absolved and it was a new start for all of us. The smartest thing to do was stay with my own."

Bulla rubbed her fingers over her neck absently, finding herself becoming increasingly intrigued by seemingly lawless Saiyan. "So… what? You're going to overthrow Raditz the first chance you get, or something?"

"Hah!" he barked. "Oh wouldn't that just suit you so well? No, girl, I have no intention of betraying Raditz. He's nothing like our old king. He's a man of the people. Not to mention-" Turles cut himself off, eyeing her cautiously.

"Not to mention what?" Bulla queried, interest most certainly piqued.

"Nothing." He dropped his arms and let out a breath.

"So how did you die?" She exhaled as well, sensing the tension from earlier slowly dissolving. "Raditz' implied you bit the dust on earth too."

"I did," he answered roughly, meeting her gaze with an intensity that raised her hackles. "Your man Kakarot killed me."

"Goku again?" Bulla tilted her head. "Was anyone  _not_ killed by him?"

Turles started to laugh, although it didn't make him appear any warmer. "Yes," he chortled. "That moron Nappa. Vegeta ended him."

If she had been eating during this moment, Bulla would surely have choked. Her eyes bulged right out of their sockets. "The king or the prince?"

This time he was the one to cock an eyebrow. "The prince," he answered, causing her to gasp audibly. "You've brushed up on your Saiyan history rather quickly, haven't you?"

"Nappa was killed by his own leader?" she blurted, entirely shaken at the thought of her father committing such an atrocious act. "Why? Did he do something awful?"

This simply elicited another chuckle from the churlish Saiyan. "Yes, he made the grave error of losing his use. Vegeta killed Nappa as soon as Kakarot defeated him in battle."

Bulla threw both palms to her mouth in shock.  _No way! Daddy would never do something that cruel._

Her surprise seemed to add to Turles' amusement as he continued to relish her disgust at hearing such callous behaviour.

"So all three of you died on earth?" Bulla told herself quietly, silently slotting this new information away for later use. "Why haven't we heard of you guys being back? I would have thought you'd come to exact your revenge or something."

"Please," he scoffed, turning his head. "We have neither the time nor the resources to go squandering our second chance on useless notions like retribution. We have our hands full enough rebuilding what we once had."

The heiress felt herself relaxing at the simple statement, quietly telling herself to avoid prodding him unnecessarily and simply use the opportunity to learn as much as she could about her fellow warriors. It seemed he wasn't quite as closed-off as she'd initially presumed.

"Raditz says your days of purging are over now…" she began, wary of pushing too far and having him close up on her. Was it possible that these barbarians really did have a greater purpose in mind - one that maybe wasn't set on chaos and domination? "What do you guys do instead to keep the wheels turning?"

He smirked, almost boyishly, as he edged towards her. "How about you answer a question for me." For a split second she saw an entirely different person opposite her, and, again, her heart leapt. "I've played nice, despite the cutting words coming from your pretty mouth. Why don't you return the favour?" He placed his palm on her head, sliding it down leisurely while his eyes dragged over her aquamarine locks. Bulla's pulse began to pick up at the proximity, especially once she realised that from this angle she couldn't see the iconic hairstyle. All she noticed was how remarkably similar he looked to  _another_  Earth-raised Saiyan.

Her expression fell at the reminder.  _Kami, I miss him._ Goku's youngest son exuded warmth and light and she couldn't help but picture his easy smile in her mind's eye while she found herself staring at a man who looked far too much like him for his own good, only adding to her deepening ache of loneliness.  _I could really do with his company right about now,_  she lamented. He seemed to have a knack for lifting her mood, even against her will.

"Can you do me a favour?" Bulla whispered, feeling a lump in her throat. Turles was already watching her with a look of increasing confusion, no doubt having noticed the unexpected tenderness with which she has just been staring at him. She didn't bother waiting for an answer before slowly hooking her arms around his neck and resting her forehead in the dip at his collarbone. Unsurprisingly, he stiffened at the action, but Bulla didn't care.

"What are you doing?" he rasped, although not as harshly as she expected.

"I'm hugging you," she sniffed, rubbing her itching nose into his cape. "If you don't know what you're supposed to do next, put your hands on my back. I just..." She was hardly expecting Turles to play along, but the heiress really was yearning for her shipmate's closeness. Keeping her eyes closed, she willed herself to pretend she was embracing someone familiar.

After a few seconds, he did as she said and pressed his palms to her sides. Bulla tightened her hold, feeling their armour between them.

 _Not the same_.

She had hugged Goten more times than she'd ever expected to over the past two or so months, and she never thought there'd come a day where she'd long for it. His arms were comforting, energy reassuring.

She turned her head, and inhaled silently, taking in Turles' musky scent.

_Not the same._

Pulling her head back, her eyes traced over his jawline, tense lips, sharp nose. Slowly she worked her way up his rugged face, memories racing back to the evening in the fancy hotel suite - the stormy look in Goten's eye was entirely electrifying and sent shivers down her spine just thinking about it.

Bringing herself back to the present, Bulla returned her attention to Turles, meeting his perplexed dark orbs with her own glassy blue ones.  _So similar_. She placed her palms either side of his face and ran her thumb over his bottom lip.  _And yet_...

With a long exhale, Bulla loosened her arms and quietly headed for the lift, leaving a decidedly disoriented Saiyan in her wake.  _Must be hormones._ She wiped her cheeks.  _I wonder if they have anything like ice cream on this dumb thing?_

* * *

"Thank you," Bulla smiled, closing her eyes in satisfaction while she licked the cold metal spoon. "It's not a perfect match, but it's close enough." The heiress had endeavoured to find the closest thing to ice cream that she could, so did her best to explain the concept to one of the few Saiyans behind the kitchen doors who was willing to listen to her.

It seemed not all purebloods were as boorish as the handful she'd interacted with thus far. While most of the kitchen staff were entirely uninterested in speaking with the strange blue-haired Earthling, the younger members were a bit more open to the outsider who had found herself amongst their ranks. From what she could sense, their battle power was rather insignificant, leading her to suspect that their primary purpose was probably to help keep the army well fed, rather than face conflict themselves.

The girl she was currently speaking with appeared young, perhaps eighteen or so, although Bulla was hardly well versed at deducing their ages. She was petite, reminding the heiress of one of those universe six Saiyans, and told the heiress her name was Fern.

"Mhm." The girl nodded. "Papa tends to the fields on Crest, while Mama serves on another fleet."

 _Saiyan farmers,_ Bulla mused.  _Who would've thought?_

"The Saiyan military seems like a bit of a major deal," she commented out loud, plunging her spoon into the tub once more before bringing the cool treat to her lips. "Are you guys at war with someone right now?"

"Nuh-uh." Fern shook her head, joining her at her bench in the, now vacant, cafeteria. "But we've managed to rebuild our reputation over the years and basically act as hired military for whoever coughs up the credits," she explained easily, watching Bulla with bashful curiosity. "Some of our people even end up permanently stationed on other planets as personal security for diplomats and other officials," she added enthusiastically. "My uncle watches over a young princess the same age as me all the way on Poat!"

"No way." Bulla lowered her head. "Like some kind of Saiyan secret service?" she asked excitedly.

"I don't know what that means," Fern answered with a sceptical look. "But those who have the leaning for battle start training early, while the rest of us try to keep things ticking over planetside through stuff like farming, building and so on. We're all working together to rebuild our society." She paused as she cast a modest glance to the heiress. "This is actually my first time joining them off-planet... it's kind of amazing."

"Oh cool!" Bulla exclaimed, blue eyes sparkling. "This was my first time leaving my home planet too. It was actually pretty thrilling, until… you know," she shrugged, taking another spoonful.

"Until you caught General Turles' eye?" Fern offered with a faint blush.

Bulla actually did choke this time, face going red as she started coughing up her dessert. "Sorry, what?" She stared at the younger girl with widened orbs.

"Oh, are we not supposed to know?" The girl smiled shyly, shimmying in her seat while she clasped her hands together. "Everyone's talking about it."

"Talking about what exactly?" Bulla asked warily, not entirely sure she really wanted to hear the answer.

Fern's gaze drifted off distractedly before she snapped herself back. "How Captain Auber found you on Advent and it was basically love at first sight for General Turles. A few of us even saw him carry you to his room while you were asleep."

 _Asleep, hah!_ Bulla had to suppress her laughter.  _That's a nice way of saying I was_ _ **gassed and physically knocked out.**_

"When you finally woke up, you two were sitting together while you spoke with our Kaiser," the young girl continued earnestly. "We couldn't be sure if the rumours were true at first, but now I know it is!"

"Huh?" the heiress reared, face scrunching at the thought. "What makes you so sure  _now_?"

"You stink."

Bulla turned her head to see an unimpressed Raditz towering over her, arms folded while his face held a mild frown.

Fern threw her hand to her mouth as she giggled into it, large deep brown eyes darting between the two older occupants.

"What?" Bulla chuckled in surprise, bringing her nose to her armpit. "No, I don't…?"  _Maybe I just can't smell my own funk_?

"I see you're not wasting any time familiarising yourself with our members," Raditz added dryly. Bulla thought his tone seemed a touch more biting than the statement would have suggested and she continued to scrutinize his expression.

"Uh, yeah." The heiress turned to look at the girl opposite her. "Fern is the first person to actually talk to me like a regular person. I was beginning to lose hope." After a few moments of silence, she continued. "Did you come all the way here from whatever super important leader-y tasks you have  _just_ to interrupt my conversation with my new friend." Bulla extended a hand to the teen. "And throw insults at me?"

Fern squirmed in her seat, watching her leader in adoration when he cast her a momentary glance.

"No," he answered bluntly. "I came to find you after Turles failed to follow through with the simple job of bringing you back to me himself." Bulla heard a squeak from the other end of the table and snorted at the apparent glee on the younger girl's features.  _She's so cute._

"Oh, so you missed me then and the only way you know how to get that across is by being a big meanie?" she chastised while she returned to her ice cream equivalent, twisting away from the older Saiyan.

"Bulla, was it?" he began, catching her interest. This was the first time any one of them had said her name out loud. "Come with me."

"Pssh." She waved her hand at him dismissively. "That is absolutely no way to talk to a lady. You'll have to be nicer than that if you want anything out of me." Bulla squinted as she scraped the last spoonful from the bottom. "Try again."

Fern's eye's widened while she looked between the blue-haired Earthling and her mountain of a chieftain. "Miss Bulla..." she whispered warningly.

Bulla stood up to toss her empty carton in the trash but soon found a large hand wrapping around her arm. "Raditz," she spoke calmly, taking a breath. "Don't be like your buddy Turles." She glared up at him, meeting his gaze unflinchingly. "We have a saying on earth that I think you'd do really well to learn: You can catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Do you know what it means?" His expression was blank. "Of course you don't," she sighed. Gently prying his fingers off her skinsuit, she continued. "It means, dear leader, if you want something out of someone, try being nice to them instead of forceful." Annoyed that her pleasant interaction with her newfound friend had been interrupted so rudely, she spoke the following bit slowly and with marked emphasis, "They may feel more inclined to go along with it." and bopped him on the nose with her finger

He stared down at her, mild annoyance sneaking through. "Pah," he finally scoffed. "Earthlings. I don't have time for this." Following this, he spun on his boot and headed for the doors.

She couldn't help but feel curious as to what he'd wanted from her, however. It wasn't like him to engage her without provocation, so despite her attempt at teaching him a lesson in manners and maintaining her conviction, she found herself conceding and following the reticent man to the double doors. Before leaving, she threw a peace sign to the teenage girl still seated at her table. "Guess I'll go and see what the big guy wants, huh?"

* * *

Bulla sat in the tiered stands of the ship's gymnasium while she watched some lower ranking Saiyans brawl on the foam mats below. Apparently, purebloods partook in essentially the same sorts of activities during space voyages as the three hybrids did on their own ship - eating, sleeping and sparring.

She had to admit, from what she'd seen so far there appeared to be a healthy level of camaraderie amongst the Saiyans, though they certainly weren't opposed to seeing a few beat downs every now and then.

It was clear to her that the ship's other occupants were intrigued by her presence amongst their troops: A stranger aboard their voyager - a woman who looked sort of Saiyan and yet didn't at the same time? They made no attempt to veil the fact that they were talking about her during their barely hushed conversations.

There was a group of soldiers circling the mat, clapping and whooping while one pinned another until he tapped out. A woman rose to her feet, large grin on her face while she held her fist up in victory.

Bulla turned her head when she heard the room's doors fly open, followed by a furious looking Turles barrelling through. He was already in the process of unclipping his cape as he marched toward the mat. Raditz entered soon after, eyes immediately falling to the, unbeknownst to him, Saiyan princess.  _I wonder what that was about._  Twisting back around, she observed the new match, noting the ease with which Turles was currently toppling his opponent.  _No surprises there. He's easily one of the strongest people I've ever met, outside of our own beloved earth Saiyans._ Not wasting any time, he grabbed his rival by the midsection and slammed down, holding her in place until she called for her own break.

After a few more whistles and calls, he threw off his armour and beckoned a handful of fighters nearby, seeking his next opponent.

Raditz strode up the steps and took a seat next to her. It didn't miss her notice that people were beginning to cast curious glances in their direction and continue to murmur amongst themselves. "What's he so worked up about?" she asked, hands either side of her face while she leaned her elbows into her knees.

Raditz merely snorted. "You're up soon," he eventually told her, causing her to straighten in a hurry.

"What?" She stared at him, but he didn't waver, simply keeping his eyes on the crowd.

"We're a race who live for battle, Bulla. Do you really think I'd let you stay on this ship so freely if you didn't hold some level of intrigue?" He was looking at her that stupid smug smirk. "Let me be the first to tell you: we're not that generous," he added, casting his gaze down at the rest of her. "I want to see this seasoned fighter Auber insists he came across on Advent. I got a taste of it myself, and I admit, you've got me curious."

 _Dammit,_  she cursed. It really was only a matter of time. What was the thing to do in such a situation? Pretend to be weak? Perhaps that was the ticket, although she had already demonstrated the ability to best multiple lower ranking warriors at once, so she wasn't sure how much she could convince them that she wasn't much to look at.  _Maybe I'll temper it. Put myself below their captains, but above the foot soldiers._

"Fine," she said once she'd come to her decision. "Who's my opponent? Turles?" Bulla nodded her head towards the mats where the aforementioned general was in the middle of winning his third match in a row.  _I'll have to let myself lose to him. Yuck._

Raditz let out a hearty laugh, causing her to frown in confusion.  _Was it that stupid of a question?_

"I'm sure you'd like that, wouldn't you," he uttered, smirk still present. "Caya!" he called out, catching the attention of one of the women down below.

She twisted around, offering a wide grin. "Yes, Kaiser?"

"Next round is you and the Earthling," he stated

"Yes, Kaiser," she nodded before casting a discreet glance to the heiress.

Bulla attempted to gauge her upcoming opponent's power, hoping to determine how much of a show to put on.  _Stronger than a lot of them,_ she noted.  _Must be a squad captain._ Before she knew it, the familiar sound of a palm thwacking the foam mat hit her ears, signalling the end of Turles' third fight.

 _Time to not-shine, princess._  Bulla stood up, taking slow deep breaths to ease her nerves as dozens of black eyes watched her amble down the steps.  _You have nothing to prove, just take it easy._

The two ladies stepped on to the mats, facing each other cautiously before Caya came charging. Instinctively Bulla ducked, easily dodging a fist to the jaw.  _Oh man, I'm actually gonna have to catch a few blows if I want to be convincing,_ she realised.  _Dammit, I hate bruising._  In the back of her mind, she sensed that Nappa had just entered, and was on his way towards the stands, no doubt equally eager to see the hidden skills of the mysterious blue-haired Earthling.

Reluctantly, Bulla allowed a punch to land on her arm. Another went for her face, but she couldn't bring herself to eat it so she caught Caya's fist in her right hand, pulled, causing her opponent to lose balance, and elbowed her in the back, earning herself an 'ooh' from the crowd.

Bulla soon heard the soldiers cheering for her opponent and had to bury the sting it brought, especially when she was forced to fall to her stomach after Caya swept at her feet. She felt a rough hand wrapping around her ankle, along with a yank. The heiress flipped herself around and retaliated with a half-hearted kick. As planned, it missed, and Caya took the chance to lay her own heel into Bulla's unguarded stomach. With a groan, she rolled on to her knees, holding her breath as she felt a foot collide with her ribs.

This continued for another few minutes before Raditz boomed, "Stop," halting their match. Bulla tentatively rose from her defensive crouch while he marched down the bleachers, expression stern. "What are you doing?" he growled at the heiress, keeping his voice low.

"What do you mean?" she asked, feigning innocence.

"What do you take me for?" he continued, showing the first signs of genuine aggravation she'd seen since she'd woken up on the ship almost a week before. "Some Earthling idiot? The openings you're leaving are beyond amateur, and yet you haven't even broken a sweat." He lowered his head and grumbled, "You're no novice. You're messing with her."

Bulla glanced at her rival, noting that the woman was indeed battling to catch her breath, while the heiress herself wasn't even remotely puffed.  _Argh!_  she silently moaned, shoulders dropping.

"Nappa!" he called, keeping his gaze on her. "You next." Caya dragged herself away and sat down with a bottle of water while the lumbering giant stomped down to join the others.

"I've been waiting for this," Nappa spoke gruffly, pulling off his chest armour. "I hear you hit hard." He wiped his thumb over his mouth, revealing a sinister smile. "Show me. I bet it tickles."

 _Daddy's second in command once upon a time,_  she reminded herself as she returned to her well-practised battle stance.  _Raditz is on to me, so I have to do better this time._ In her peripheral vision she could see him watching her with folded arms from the sidelines.  _I shouldn't have to fake it too much. Nappa's_ _strong._

And indeed he was. Bulla definitely felt herself needing to make more of an effort to block the flurry of punches as he slowly worked her to the edge of the mat. Once she hit the end, she had no option but to push forward, taking a brief opening and punching him square in the gut. His surprise at catching a hit allowed her an opportunity to skirt past him, although not as quickly as she needed to. He reached out a monstrous hand, gripped her arm and tossed her to the ground. Bulla gasped when she realised she was about to find herself straddled by the giant of a man and quickly rolled before hopping back to her feet and shooting to the opposite end.

 _Look at that,_ she panted, beginning to enjoy this little match.  _My heart is actually starting to beat_. It had been rather boring the past few days, wandering around aimlessly and annoying Raditz when he was around to be pestered. And she had to admit, she was beginning to feel a bit restless having gone this long without a good spar with one of the boys.  _What's the harm in having a little fun? Nappa can take it._

At just that moment, a high-velocity beam came right at her, originating from his eyes.  _Whoa,_ she twisted just in time, watching it sail past her.  _So we're using ki, are we? Good to know._  She threw a risky glance to Raditz, noting that his lip was curling, apparently enjoying this battle a lot more than the previous one. Bulla flew straight at her adversary, deciding that she'd had enough of playing the defensive game.

The heiress erupted in a series of rapid-fire swings, most of which were blocked, before spinning on the ball of her foot and smacking her heel into his side. He let out a grunt, but sucked it up and gripped her leg, whirling around, succeeding in making her dizzy before launching her across the room. Digging her nails into the soft floor to slow herself down, she dragged back a few feet before coming to a stop and tossing half a dozen ki balls to keep him busy. While he was distracted, she brought both hands to her left and curled her fingers, a ball of purple energy slowly growing between them. In the corner of her eye, she saw Raditz' arms slowly loosen while his own dark orbs grew wider as he watched her budding attack. She couldn't help but take pleasure in reminding these buffoons that she was indeed stronger than she looked.

"Enough!" Raditz declared, turning to his comrade. "Nappa, come with me." He looked to Bulla. "You too."

 _Huh?_  She straightened slowly but stayed in position, not entirely sure of what exactly was going on.

He stormed over to her, expression entirely sober. "I've just realised who you are," he uttered.

Bulla's energy fizzled.  _Aw, crap._


	14. Eclipsed

The gym doors were violently thrown open as Raditz crashed through. Nappa was close behind while Bulla reluctantly followed, dozens of eyeballs on her back.

"What's the problem, Raditz?" Nappa griped, extending his arms in frustration. "That was one of the best fights I've had in months. Why'd you have to go and ruin our fun?"

"Are you completely blind?" he grated, swivelling to glare at his fellow Saiyan, red cape flapping like a flag in the wind. Nappa's expression was completely perplexed, a single eyebrow rising while he slowly shook his head in bewilderment. "I don't believe this," Raditz grumbled to himself, spinning around and showing his back to them while he stared at the hallway floor. "It's not possible." The muttering continued as he began to pace.

Bulla's pulse was starting to climb as she watched Raditz perform his mental gymnastics. So taken in by the Saiyan leader's mumblings, she was caught off guard when she felt herself being slowly pressed into the wall. She gasped when she saw Nappa's massive face mere inches from her own

"You," he grinned, genuine glee written all over his features. "Are a spitfire. We are doing that again." Without warning, Raditz grabbed hold of the older man and flung him over to the opposite wall.

 _Whoa._ Her eyes shot open at the sudden display of power from the usually restrained Saiyan. He stepped in front of the heiress, her breath catching as he stared at her openly, eyebrows drawing together while dark orbs combed over her face, millimetre by millimetre. Gripping her jaw between his fingers, he slowly rolled her head side-to-side. She frowned at the uncharacteristic manhandling, but her reaction prompted an unexpected smile to crack on his determined expression.

"There it is," he breathed, barely above a whisper. "I don't know how I missed it for so long." He released his grip on her face and leaned his palm into the wall beside her head, letting out a long exhale as he glanced down the hallway.

In her peripheral vision, Bulla could see Nappa slowly rising from the ground. "Raditz," he groaned. "What are you yammering about?"

"The girl." He lifted his head to gaze at her and the intensity in his dark stare made her stomach flip. She took a hard gulp as he brought his callused hand to her head, just as Turles had in the engine room, and ran his fingers through her hair in wonder. He dragged the rough digits right to the tips and watched them slowly fall to her shoulder.

"What about her?" Nappa joined him in scrutinising the heiress, only adding to her increasing sense of claustrophobia as he blocked her right side.

"She's a half-breed," Raditz answered quietly, bringing his attention back to her eyes, seemingly seeking something. The truth perhaps.

"A  _half-breed_?" Nappa repeated, scepticism clear.

"It's so obvious now." Raditz clenched his jaw so hard she could see a pulsing vein bulging past his temple. "From how you hold yourself, to how you talk down your nose at us... We knew he wasn't revived with the rest of us." Bulla inhaled slowly, reminding herself to stay calm. "It's written all over you but we didn't even see it."

_I think the game's up, princess._

"Out of who?" Nappa frowned in disbelief.

"Why don't you tell us yourself, Bulla," Raditz rasped.

She rolled her head along the cool wall, hearing the drum of her pulse in her ears as she took in each of their imposing faces.  _It was only a matter of time, I guess._  Bulla opted to stick to her normal strategy and simply say nothing.

"Suddenly not so talkative anymore, I see?" he exhaled through his nose.

The gymnasium doors flew open for a second time as Turles marched through, showing mild surprise at the sight of the two high-ranking Saiyans towering over the progressively shrinking Earthling.

 _Do I fight them?_  she asked herself.  _What's the point. I have nowhere to go, even if I win._  Bulla inhaled quietly.  _The best thing I can do is continue to cooperate as much as I can until I get back to Advent._

"What's going on?" Turles wandered over and occupied the space to her left, rendering her completely boxed in.

"Turns out your underling made the right call," Raditz spoke, gaze firmly cemented to the heiress. "Your girlfriend is indeed Saiyan." She couldn't help but recoil at the jab, but kept her mouth shut while she watched the three men navigate the slowly unfolding situation.

"Where does her Saiyan blood come from?" the bald-headed giant asked once more, growing impatient while he continued to eye her, seemingly attempting to piece the puzzle together himself.

"Prince Vegeta."

The words rang in her ears and rebounded off the inside of her skull. Immediately, her knees buckled as Bulla closed her eyes in defeat.  _Fuck._

" **What?!** " Nappa roared, eyes boring into the lone female while she attempted to bury herself in the passage wall. "Impossible! Vegeta would never sully his bloodline with some feeble earth woman."

"I've purged with him since I was a boy," Raditz added, watching the contortions in her features. "I know how he fights, and so do you old man. Not to mention, we've each been on the receiving end of his sneer enough times to have it permanently ingrained in our brains. Tell me I'm right," he directed at the heiress. "I want to hear you say it."

She cast a glance to the man immediately to her left. Turles was watching her with folded arms, expression unreadable.  _As it should be,_  he had said when Raditz commented on all the royals being six feet under. Flicking her gaze to the right, she noted Nappa was glaring harshly, almost frothing at the mouth.  _Daddy killed him by his own hand,_ she winced _._  Bringing her attention back to the warrior directly in front of her, she took a deep breath and straightened her posture.

"It's true," she stated calmly, keeping her head high. "I'm half-Saiyan and Prince Vegeta is my father."

She heard a deafening roar as Nappa punched a hole right through the wall next to her head before drawing back and storming off. She suppressed a shudder at the display and glanced back at the two remaining Saiyans.

A dark smile cracked on Turles' face before it grew to a full grin and he burst into bawdy laughter. He clapped Raditz' shoulder a couple of times before heading in the opposite direction. "Beautiful," she heard him utter before he disappeared.

Bulla reluctantly returned her gaze to the last remaining member. He hadn't taken his eyes off her for a solid minute. "What?" she spat defiantly. "It's not like I lied to you."

"You didn't think it would have been relevant to inform us of your ancestry?" he seethed, restrained rage leaking through every pore. "You're not just Saiyan, girl. You're fucking royalty. Daughter of the prince no less!"

"Of course I knew it was relevant." Bulla crossed her arms and turned her head. "But why would I volunteer that sort of detail when I barely know you guys," she frowned back at him. "I had no idea what you'd do once you found out."

"You played me," Raditz growled, an expression so deadly she could hardly believe he was of the same flesh and blood as her father's beloved arch rival. He turned to leave too. Unlike the others, however, she felt compelled to go after him.

"I wasn't trying to," she found herself saying, grabbing his arm. He simply shrugged her away, keeping his hard gaze ahead.

He reached his private door and she attempted to follow him in, but he held out his hand to block her entry, a large, abraded palm centimetres from her face. "I've been accommodating enough," he told her coolly. "You're clearly more than capable of looking out for yourself until we reach Crest."

"Raditz," she pleaded, slipping under his arm and snaking into the suite, the corners of her eyes dropping as she kept her attention fixed on his painfully emotionless expression. "You have to try to see this from my perspective." She clenched her fist, an unexpected guilt washing over her. "I've said it before, you're not like the others."

She took his silence as consent to keep going.

"I was scared, okay!" She threw out her arms, resenting having to admit it out loud. "Your men just attacked me out of nowhere. And then I woke up on this massive ship, alone. No one familiar in sight!" Her voice cracked. "What did you expect from someone who was dragged here against their will? I had to keep my cards close."

"Do you think we treat everyone we meet with such hospitality?" he bit back, swaying his own arm out. "Letting them eat amongst our soldiers, watch our fights, sleep in our suites?"

Aquamarine brows creased together.

"We look out for our own," he informed through gritted teeth. "And when we come across others of our kind, we bring them home. It's safer there."

Bulla's breath caught in her throat.  _What?_

"Our numbers are low, but it's where our strength lies," he added. "We've learned our lesson."

She could hardly follow the words coming out of his mouth. "What are you say-"

"And to think I gave you the benefit of the doubt," he grumbled under his breath, giving the halfling pause. "Foolishly, I assumed you were in the dark about your own heritage." Raditz spared her a harsh glance. "But I knew you had to be one of us."

"But... I told you I wasn't," she muttered.

"Do you think you're the only stranded Saiyan we've ever come across?" he argued, deep scowl sinking into his features. "We're scattered all over the galaxy, Bulla. Some have no idea who or what they are. I've told you before." He clenched his jaw, bringing his face to hers. "You are not the first."

The question that had been burning on her mind since Bhander filled every corner of her brain. " _Where did you guys come from?_ " she whispered, shaky eyes raking over his severe features while his breath danced over her skin, setting her fine hairs on end.

"No." His lip curled, but like Turles, it was devoid of any semblance of warmth. "I'm done answering your questions. It's time you answer mine."

After a few seconds, she exhaled, "Okay," glancing away as she absently rubbed her arm to soothe her jittery nerves.

"But not now," he added, spinning on his heel and stepping towards the door. "I need to contact the others. You're in the dormitories from now on."

"What?" she frowned, sinking into the edge of his bed. "Do I have to? They're so gross _._ "

"Ask Turles then." He opened the door and stepped through. "Perhaps he's feeling generous."

"Can't I just keep staying here with you?" Bulla called out, causing him to pause as he looked back at her, eyes discreetly falling down her bodysuit.

"I can't believe that  _you_  of all people are Vegeta's daughter."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She was watching him sceptically.

"He was such an ugly fuck."

_Is that a yes?_

* * *

Bulla wandered down one of the many featureless hallways a few hours after her hackle-raising encounter with the three high-ranking Saiyans. Absently, she grazed her fingers along the wall while she came to grips with her premature reveal.

 _Turles apparently thinks it's hilarious,_ she catalogued.  _That dude is so.._. She shook her head.  _And Nappa…_  she cringed at the memory of his untethered fury.  _Yeah, I should probably avoid that guy for a while._

 _As usual, Raditz has to go and be mister mysterious,_  she sighed, coming to a stop. While expected that he would be, understandably, frustrated about her keeping the truth hidden, she was having a hard time deciphering his sentiments about the news itself.

It wasn't the first time she found herself wondering about the reticent Saiyan.  _It's like he's the polar opposite of Goku,_ she grumbled in frustration.  _So freakin' hard to read._

She couldn't help but feel uneasy about being in the dark about his impression of her. Bulla prided herself on being able to know just the right buttons to press with almost anyone, but this beast was a tougher nut to crack.

The heiress continued onward, turning random corners on a whim.

"Earthling," she heard someone call out. Begrudgingly, Bulla twisted around, not really wanting to reinforce the entirely uncreative nickname.

"Caya," the heiress greeted in surprise. "Hey."

"Come here," the captain waved her over.

 _It's not like I've got anything better to do,_  Bulla considered, following after her when she casually stepped into one of the shared rooms.

"Oh. Hi," Bulla bashfully greeted the two men who were almost done drying off at their beds on the opposite side, ensuring to keep her gaze averted while they pulled on their body suits.

"That was a brilliant fight with General Nappa," the Captain praised over her shoulder as she made her way to her own bed. "I've never seen anyone on the ship keep up that well. Outside of General Turles and the Kaiser, of course."

"Thank you," Bulla replied warmly, taking the adjacent cot, a smile slowly growing. "You're not so bad yourself you know."

Caya flapped her hand. "I know you played your strength down for me, but I'm glad I faced you nonetheless." She pulled off her armour while she sat down at her mattress. "Hey Rhubo," she called out, catching one of the men's attention. Bulla glanced over to him too, silently thankful that he was covered. He seemed relatively young compared to the others, perhaps even the same age as her, with a square shaped face and hairline. His mane pointed straight out until it reached the base of his neck and he was taller than her, as well as lean, for a Saiyan, though his skinsuit ended at his thighs and shoulders, revealing some impressively defined muscle.

 _Yum._ Bulla eyed him appreciatively.

"Captain?" he responded, giving her his full attention.

"Did you see that kick she landed on our General?" she snickered, jumping up and mimicking the action with an imaginary adversary. "I felt it from the sidelines."

Rhubo looked over to the heiress. "Sure did," he smiled too. "Just when I thought I'd seen it all. A blue-haired girl comes out of nowhere and goes toe-to-toe with The Big Man."

"Why didn't the Kaiser fight her himself?" another man spoke up from a few beds away. His build was more squat, displaying broader arms and legs, and sporting a hairstyle that was modest enough to almost pass as Earthling-esque.

"C'mon, Drago," Caya laughed, throwing a wink to the heiress. "We already know how that would end. Weren't you watching him?" She nodded her head at Bulla. "He wasn't there to play. He didn't take his eyes off her for a second."

"What are you talking about?" Bulla asked, eyebrows drawing together.

"The Kaiser's observant," she answered easily, stretching each arm across her chest. "I've heard some of the others say it's Bardock's doing. He insisted that being strong wasn't enough if we didn't want to end up as cattle for slaughter again."

"Bardock sounds like a clever guy," the heiress commented, most certainly intrigued by what she was already picking from the other soldiers.

"Not as clever as King Vegeta," Drago responded, bending down to scratch in his personal chest. "Too bad the smarts and the strength still did nothing to keep him alive."

Despite his words, the lack of genuine remorse in his tone put Bulla on edge. It could just be nerves and paranoia, but Turles' sentiments about the royal family, along with Nappa's outburst at finding out her relation to the prince forced her to consider the possibility that her heritage may not be the most warmly accepted bit of trivia once word got out.

"Hey, I'm gonna..." Bulla pointed to the door as she stood up slowly.

"Earthling," Caya spoke, pausing her exercise. "Come find me next time you're itching for another fight."

"Alright," the heiress nodded, smile returning. "I'm Bulla, by the way."

"Bulla." She could see the captain saying the name to herself, perhaps trying to remember it.

The halfling waved to the others while she strode towards the exit.  _Yay,_ she beamed when she spun around.  _A new friend._

Making her way to the elevator, she caught the lift to Raditz' floor, acknowledging that she'd have to show her face to the others again eventually. She wasn't expecting it to happen so soon, however. The doors opened one short floor up and, to her great surprise, Nappa was waiting on the other side.

She heard him inhale once he noticed her _. Great._

The General stepped in without a word, prompting her to exit early.  _Stairs will do fine, thank you_. He put out his arm and smashed the 'close doors' button, interrupting her attempt to dodge him. Once they slid shut, he swivelled around, boring her into the ground.

"You're really Vegeta's spawn?" he finally spoke.

Bulla kept her attention on the exit. "So what if I am?"

He gritted his teeth gritted as he stepped towards her. "Then I'd love nothing more than to kill you," Nappa growled.

The threat simply elicited a snort from the heiress. "I would love to see you try, old man," she taunted, meeting his gaze unflinchingly.

Immediately he wrapped his beefy hands around her neck and slammed her against the side wall, though he refrained from clenching.  _He's warning me,_  she noted, keeping her eyes on his own steadily.

"The things I did for that bastard over the years," he rumbled. Bulla edged her face away as she felt their chest plates squashing together. "Taught him everything I knew. Protected him from the jaws of death more than times than I can count."

Her expression softened. "You saved my father?" she asked cautiously.

"Hah!" he barked. "Do you think any of us would have made it as far as we did if we didn't have each other?" Nappa slowly loosened his grip and clutched her face in one of his hands. "I gave your father a lifetime of loyalty." His voice was gravel. "And he paid me back by denying me an honourable death."

Bulla glared back into fiery black orbs.

"I'm sorry," she uttered. Immediately, his thin, dark brows twitched together, a look of confusion creeping onto his features. "It sounds like he was a massive jerk," she continued, staying her hand. "You didn't deserve that. I probably owe my own existence to you. My brother's too." His face wore a full-fledged frown now. "Thank you."

The doors finally opened on her desired floor, and she sensed yet more familiar ki's on the other side.

"Nappa," Raditz voiced from the entrance, narrowing his eyes at his delegate before transferring his gaze to the heiress. "What have I said to you about leaving the girl alone?"

The bald-headed General straightened slowly, dropped his hand and leisurely spun on his boot. "I was just having a chat with our pretty new princess," he responded sardonically, draping his broad arm over her spandex-covered shoulders as he pulled from the wall.

Turles watching the scene with unveiled amusement. "You're even more of an idiot than I thought," he laughed, stepping through while he kept his eyes on the older General. She heard him mutter something about a death wish while he shook his head and she took her opportunity to make her exit, weaselling her way out of his grasp and sliding past the Kaiser.

Raditz grabbed her arm, giving her a start, and turned his head towards her. Her pulse rose as she stared into his dark eyes, a storminess present that immediately brought back steamy memories involving his nephew and an involuntary shiver rippled through her. Warily, she looked to the other two, finding both were already watching her. Nappa was standing straight, hands clasped behind his back while Turles observed her with folded arms and an unbreaking smirk.

Wordlessly, Raditz loosened his grip and stepped through the threshold. Despite herself, she cast a final tentative glance as the doors closed.

 _Daddy used to be one of them,_ she reminded herself, taking in each of their harsh faces.  _Maybe even worse._

* * *

Bulla sucked on a hard boiled sweet and swished it around her mouth as she relaxed on her back on the well-worn single bed, staring at the ceiling while the tips of her blue locks grazed the ship floor. It had been a few days since the truth had come out about her parentage, and she thought it would be wise to keep a low profile until the news blew over. She was still semi-avoiding Nappa and Turles - the latter more on principle than anything else - while Raditz had barely said a word to her since his confrontation. He often came in after she was already asleep and was gone before she woke up. She couldn't even tell what to make of it since he was hardly conversational anyway.

"I can't believe someone from the royal family's still alive," Fern whispered, squeezing her pillow while she sat at an adjacent bed. "After the king died the second time, we all thought that was the end of their line."

"Nope, his oldest son is a tough one to keep down." Bulla smiled at the many tales she'd heard about her father over the years. "He's absolutely fearless. Stared death in the face countless times, died  _twice_  and came back to fight some more."

The younger girl gasped before whacking her in the face with the cushion. "You're lying!"

"Nuh-uh." The heiress shook her head with a giggle. "He's the best damn fighter the universe has ever seen."

"Amazing," Fern lilted, getting that dreamy look in her eye again while she stared off into the distance. "I can't believe I'm talking to a real Saiyan princess."

"I can't believe I've finally met someone who cares!" Bulla laughed, reaching her fingers to the floor as she slowly lifted her limbs and shifted into a handstand. "That thing you said earlier though, about the king dying a second time... What happened?"

She saw the teen slump as she recalled the memory. "A contract negotiation gone horribly wrong," she sighed. "Bardock warned him not to go through with it, but he was…" She hesitated as she threw a glance to the heiress. "Headstrong," she decided. "After that, Bardock took over. He didn't want to, but everyone loved him, so he eventually agreed." Her sweet smile returned. "He had a good run, and we made plenty of progress under his rule. Most of the milestones we've reached since our revival are entirely thanks to him."

"How's Raditz as a successor?" Bulla enquired as she gently dropped back to her feet and crossed her legs on the floor, curious about the peoples' esteem of the relatively young warrior. He seemed to take the role seriously, but it really was hard for her to imagine anyone with Goku's blood making sound decisions that affected the world at large.

"He's the best." Fern hugged her arms to herself and twisted side to side. "It's only been a couple of years, so he's not as experienced, but he's a good leader. He works hard and always has our people's interest in the forefront of his mind." Bulla could practically see the hearts coming off young girl's head as she as she gushed about the enigmatic Kaiser. "I think all those years under Lord Frieza gave him perspective that no one else could really appreciate," she added. "Except maybe General Nappa, but he's a bit impatient sometimes."

Bulla mulled over her words, thinking about her father.  _From what people tell me, daddy's come so far since those days. I wonder if these Saiyans could ever become truly good women and men like he did._ She found herself recalling the intense look in Raditz' eye while he unravelled her heritage in the hallway outside the rec room and felt her cheeks beginning to warm.  _You've always had a weakness for bad boys, Bulla,_  she snorted.  _But this might be taking it a bit too far._ It certainly didn't help when she caught semblances of his youngest nephew in his features. Or maybe it was the other way round.

 _That family,_  she sighed.  _I can't seem to help myself. What's wrong with me?_  She threw her palms to her face and started to laugh.

"Are you crying," Fern cocked her head in concern, rubbing the heiress' shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"No, no," Bulla giggled, dropping her arms. "I'm just being ridiculous. It's been a while since I… you know." She offered the teen a sheepish look. "Way too long actually. My thoughts are all over the place right now."

"The women in my dorm say General Turles is the best on the fleet," she offered proudly, causing Bulla to throw her palm to her forehead.

 _Of course that jackass is the lady-pleaser_. She rolled her eyes.

"Is it true?" Fern asked hopefully. "I really want him to be my first..." Her face blushed a fiery crimson as she squeezed her lids shut.

" **What?!** " the heiress blurted at both comments. "Fern, please, don't waste your time pining after a jerk like him. Besides, how would  _I_  know what he's like in the sack? I avoid him like the plague."  _Except for that one time when I went insane and tried to pretend he was someone else._  Bulla coughed.

The teen started to giggle, bringing her fingers to her mouth. "Because you two are… you know..."

"We're  _what_?" Bulla raised an eyebrow, not liking the direction this conversation was going in the slightest.

"Fucking." Another woman entered the room and began peeling off her armour, tossing it onto the bed Bulla had occupied earlier.

The heiress inhaled so sharply she almost felt light-headed. " _Excuse me?_ " She glared at the new arrival, mouth open wide as words completely failed her. "Wh- Did  _he_ say this?!"

The soldier shrugged as she stripped off her bodysuit. It seemed Raditz really wasn't the only Saiyan who didn't bat an eye about being nude around strangers. "We all have noses. And it's typical of him anyway," she explained easily. "The Kaiser stopped bothering to enforce any sort of policy a long time ago. The guy's always done what he wants."

For what must have been the millionth time since she first woke up on this damn boat, Bulla couldn't believe her ears. Apparently, everyone was under the impression that she was getting down and dirty with that ass of a General and she had no awareness of it? Who knows how long this spot of gossip had been circulating. For Pete's sake, it had barely even been a fortnight since they'd even found her on Advent!

Before she knew it, her feet were carrying her out of the first-floor dormitories and straight to his beacon of an energy signature. He was near his room it seemed, and -oh joy!- with his dear leader.

The two men were in the middle of conversation when she flew Turles' direction, grabbed him by the shoulders and tossed him into his suite. She noted, with amusement, that his door jamb and hinges had recently been replaced before slamming it shut.

"What is with you?!" he exclaimed. "Couldn't you see I was in the middle of something?"

Bulla was so furious, all she saw was red before she threw a vicious punch right at his face.

"Whoa!" He ducked just in time, much to her dissatisfaction, navy cape trailing after him. An unnerving smile suddenly broke on his severe features. "You want to play, do you?"

He launched himself at the heiress, aiming for her gut, but she blocked his fist with both hands before hopping backwards. He threw a second punch at her jaw. Catching it in her palm left her side open and she soon felt a hard shin burying itself in her waist.

"Ah!" she moaned, dropping to her knees from the blinding pain. Thinking fast, she wrapped her arms around both of his meaty legs and pulled backwards, dropping Turles to his back with a grunt. Not wasting any time, she crawled on top of him, straddling his middle, and proceeded to throw a single heavy blow to his face. He groaned as he grabbed both of her wrists and bucked his hips, flipping her over so she was the one sandwiched between the ground and her opponent. Still keeping a firm hold on her arms, he pressed both to his bedroom floor and took the opportunity to catch his breath.

"Get off me!" Bulla yelled, fury peaking. She'd never realised how closely matched she was with Goku's look-alike until this moment.  _I guess I really am not the only one in this place who knows how to modulate my ki_. Of course, she still had an ace up her sleeve but the heiress was fully intending on keeping that under wraps until she really needed it.

Turles glanced down at her, breath still ragged while he slowly lowered his head, sweat already dripping off the end of his pointy nose. Bulla glared back indignantly, unwilling to show any sign of trepidation.

The door flew open suddenly, causing both fighters to snap their heads. Raditz stood in the doorway, fingers still on the handle, and a single eyebrow cocked at the sight before him: Bulla flat on her back, hair sprawled and arms pinned while one of his top Generals held her down, his face mere inches from her own.

"Turles," he voiced, expression straightening. "I seem to remember you insisting that the rumours were unsubstantiated."

Bulla returned her attention to the man above her. "Wait," she puffed. "You've been denying it?"

The aforementioned General looked at her warily before slowly rising back up and lengthening his spine. "Of course I have," he chastised, tightening his grip on her arms. "And your little stunts aren't helping."

"Ow," she whined at the increased pressure on her wrists. "I thought you were the one who started it! I came here to give you a piece of my mind." Seeing that her temper was beginning to ease, he released her arms, much to Bulla's relief, and leisurely rose to his full height. She inhaled deeply, attempting to even out her breathing. He cast her a glance and extended his hand which she took gratefully. "Thanks," she breathed, rather surprised at the sportsmanship. She dusted herself off before doing the same for him and flattening his cape.

"I certainly was not the one to initiate those inane whisperings," he spat bitterly.

"Well where did they come from then?" she frowned, resting her hands on her hips. "I might not be one of you guys, but I still value my reputation, you know. The last thing I want is for people to think I'd jump into bed with someone like  _you._ "

"You flatter me," he muttered dully. "Stop throwing yourself at me and maybe the rumours will go away." He pressed his fingers to her spine and steered her toward the door. "Now get out. I need to wash your Earthling scent off me."

With a huff, Bulla joined Raditz in the doorway, noting the satisfied smirk at the end of his mouth. "You enjoyed that, did you?" she mumbled, feeling even more sheepish than she had before.

"Let's say it was eye-opening," he commented, keeping his hand on the small of her back while he guided her down the hallway. She resented the fact that she felt jittery at the contact.  _Stop it, Bulla. He's an evil Saiyan! Although_ … she allowed her thoughts to drift.  _Has he done anything all that evil since you've met him? They're brutes, and certainly rough around the edges, but none of them have been especially malevolent._ She threw her palms to her face in shame.  _What the heck am I saying? Trying to justify this is sick. They're no angels, far from it. Just keep your head down and mind clean._

It turned out Raditz had been driving her towards his own suite the entire time she was back and forthing in her head. "Turles has the right idea," was all he said once he opened the door. Bulla took his barely veiled hint and grabbed a change of clothes before walking to the bathroom and throwing on the shower.

While the water beat down on her back, she closed her eyes and thought back to her evening with Goten. She found herself recalling that night a lot these days, along with a handful of other shared moments with the unassuming half-Saiyan.  _When did I start feeling attracted to him?_ she sighed.  _How far down the rabbit hole do I want to go?_  Bulla snorted to herself.  _Dude's a babe. Always has been. I guess I never really allowed myself to think he was ever an option._  She let out another breath as she soaped herself over.  _And what's to say he is now? We both just got caught up in the moment. Each of us still raw from freshly failed relationships._ She paused when she realised how close they came to making a monumental mistake.  _We would have been each other's rebounds._  Bulla scrunched her face. She was beginning to think it was for the best that Trunks turned up when he did.  _Hopefully this means that when we eventually meet up again we can go back to being friends._

Bulla turned off the tap and reached for her towel, drying herself off before slipping into a fresh bodysuit. Fingering her hair, she sought the comb Fern had so generously offered up.  _Maybe I left it in the main room?_

She strolled through, finding it strange that the main light was still off but admittedly more focused on detangling her tresses before they dried too much. "Much better," she heard Raditz utter from somewhere behind her.

 _There it is!_  She bent down and picked the wooden instrument up from her makeshift floor bed.

She proceeded to drag the comb through her lengthening locks while she sat at the foot of the mattress, flinching every time she ran into a knot. She gazed up at Raditz curiously when he quietly padded over to her, towering above her already petite form while his tail thrashed behind him. "What's up?" she asked casually.

He lifted his hand, pressing his palm to her cheek while he stared down at her. The bathroom light was still on, casting a shadow on the wild-haired Saiyan. She couldn't see his face, but the jolt that needled through her at the simple, yet unexpected contact was enough to raise the hair on the back of her neck. She turned her head to look at the hand currently cupping her face as he brought a single leg up and kneeled into the mattress.

She shivered at the heat coming off him when he edged closer, instinctively leaning backwards as she attempted to keep a healthy distance between them. " _What are you doing_?" she whispered, pulse steadily rising.

Broad fingers travelled towards the back of her neck, slipping into her still-damp hair while he brought a fist to the top blanket. "What do you think?" His voice was low. She gasped when she felt her roots pinch, followed by a pair of warm lips crashing into hers.

The heiress inhaled sharply, pressing her palms into his chest while her eyes grew wide.  _This isn't happening,_  she yelled internally. Except it was. And she was certainly strong enough to throw him off at any moment. And yet she didn't.

Bulla let out a long moan as she allowed herself to give in to the sensation, head swirling while butterflies coursed all through her. When she lowered down to lean into her elbows, he crawled on top of her, large hand sliding down her side and squeezing at her thigh. Fingertips dug so roughly into the nylon they were threatening to rip right through.

When she flattened onto her back, lithe arms wrapped around his neck while his fingers glided back up, tightening at her waist. She whimpered at the touch, eliciting a low growl from the older Saiyan as his tail snaked around her leg.  _He is definitely no earth boy,_ she shuddered.

He dragged his sharp nose over her cheek and towards her neck, sending shivers down her spine while his right hand travelled to her back, reaching for the zip on her skinsuit. Effortlessly, he slid it down, causing her to arch away from the bed and drive her chest into his own. He proceeded to suck at her delicate skin before pawing at the slick fabric with both hands, eagerly peeling it past her shoulders.

The heiress felt cool air licking at the slowly exposing skin at her chest while his face trailed close behind, relishing every inch of flesh that was gradually being revealed. As quickly as it started, Bulla was suddenly hit with a moment of clarity and threw the burly Saiyan off of her and onto the vacant half of the bed.

Frantically, she panted into her palm, reluctantly glancing out of the corner of her eye to see a frustrated looking Raditz sigh as he stared at the ceiling, arm out behind him.

"Why did you do that?" she breathed.

"Why did you stop?" he returned.

_Why did I stop?_

She could feel him looking at her and just wanted the ground to swallow her whole. Discreetly, she caressed her lips with her fingers _, I just kissed the new leader of the Saiyans_ , before tightening her fists and squeezing her lids _... and I think I liked it?_

 _No no no!_  Bulla shot up and bolted for the door.

She flew straight to the stairwell, not even wanting to waste time standing still waiting at the lift, lest she be forced to face her thoughts in public. Once she reached the engine room, she leaned into the rails and took a deep breath, attempting to centre herself.

What the heck was she doing? She knew exactly where that was going the moment he touched her, and yet she allowed it to progress regardless. Why?  _Because I wanted it,_  a little voice told her.  _Argh!_  She clenched her hands in her hair.  _This fucking space voyage has made me crazy! First Goten, now his chieftain uncle?!_

After half an hour of pacing, berating herself and throwing every insult she could think of in her own direction, she wasn't feeling any less attracted to the man four stories up. She took a slow breath.  _Bulla, maybe…_  her heart started to thump just initiating the thought.  _Maybe this isn't such a ludicrous idea. You don't get any more 'no-strings-attached' than a guy who doesn't even live in the same freaking solar system as you._ She nodded at her own point.

 _He's a changed man, just like my father. Okay, maybe not to that extent, but he's still no Frieza._ She tapped her nail to the metal rail.  _It doesn't have to mean anything. You just have an itch that really needs scratching and he's kind of…_ A wave of heat passed through her.

 _I wanted some fun after that asshole, Reco,_  she added another line to her mental list.  _Well, the universe is giving me an option._

With another deep breath, she spun on her heel and marched towards the lift, capitalising on the burst of conviction before she talked herself out of her decision.

When she reached his room door, she pressed her fingers to the handle and twisted down. On opening it, she found he had just exited the shower, a look of uncertainty sneaking onto his face once he realised who had just entered.

"Come here," she commanded from the doorway. He did as she said, stepping over silently. She wiped a single digit over his bare chest, taking the time to truly appreciate a body built and refined by a lifetime of battle and hard work. Scars littered his arms and torso, bold and faint. Barely a square inch was free of some unwritten story.

"The two that I was with before," she spoke steadily. "They're alive?"

"Yes."

Bulla flattened her palm against his pec, almost setting her hand on fire. Her knees went weak and she forced down the whimper that sat in her throat. "You promise me that when I get back to Advent they'll be in one piece." She edged closer, leaning her forehead into his breastbone and closing her eyes while she kept her right hand on the metal knob - her last lifeline before she breached the boundary of no return.

"Last I heard," he answered huskily, watching her through heavy lids. "Both were fine."

She gazed up at him, shivering at the raw, animalistic wanting that screamed back at her in his own dark orbs.  _Oh, he's bad._

She held her breath.

_But then again... everyone on earth knows I've never been a good girl._

And with that, Bulla clicked the door closed behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as some of you have probably noticed, we're heading towards Christmas. As a result, I'm out of town, but had this chapter prewritten so it was simply a case of hitting 'Post New Chapter' this morning. The next chapter is already in the starting blocks too, so business should theoretically carry on as usual but I may be a little slow responding to comments, depending on how busy I end up being. Rest assured though, I will get back to anyone who reaches out when I can. You'll be keeping me sane while my stress levels fly through the roof so don't feel bad about dropping me a line :')
> 
> Thank you to everyone again for your support and encouragement so far, it makes such a difference. Merry Christmas to those of you who celebrate, take care!


	15. Soul and Sin

_I'm going straight to hell_ , Bulla winced, dragging her palms up her face and clenching her fingers in her hair. Quietly, she rolled her head left to take in the impossibly brawny Saiyan who currently had his arm slung over her while he snored softly.

 _I can't believe I did that._  Bulla continued her silent beration.  _He literally used to go on killing sprees with my dad…_

Blue orbs shot open.  _This is all my mother's fault!_  she realised.  _She's got some fucked up gene that makes her attracted to crazy murderers and she passed it on to me! That's the only explanation._ She attempted to move his arm but the action only caused him to reflexively tighten his grip.  _How many people has he killed with his bare hands?_ she asked herself, gazing down at the beefy limb.  _And he just used them to…_ A shiver ran through her.

 _You can still come back from this,_ she soothed.  _It was a mistake, everyone makes mistakes. Especially you._  She had to nod at her own point.  _Just don't do it again._

New plan: Bulla would not go down this road a second time. Come morning, she'd find somewhere else to stay. Maybe she could bunk up with Fern, or sleep in the engine room. Sure, she could go now, to really solidify her decision, but… well. She was kind of comfortable. It was her first time relaxing in a real bed in almost two weeks! And she wasn't exactly in a hurry to throw such a luxury away. Plus, she'd had the chance to experience a few other soldiers' cots in her time aboard the Saiyan Express and Raditz' was easily the most comfortable. Admittedly, Turles' was a close second, but it certainly wasn't in her best interest to go crawling back to his suite considering the rumours currently circulating the fleet about the two of them.

She let out a heavy sigh, the muscles in her back singing out in relief. Through closed lids, she sensed Raditz stirring above her before feeling herself sink deeper into the mattress as he smoothly slid on top of her, warm lips pressing into her own lazily. He muttered something she couldn't quite catch under his breath, but a second shiver coursed down her spine all the same. All too soon, her brain turned to custard and all well-intentioned notions of being a better person disappeared into the vacuum of outer space.

* * *

To her relief, the bed was empty when she woke the next morning. Bulla couldn't help the satisfied smile that spread across her face as she stretched her limbs and dragged them around the sheets.  _Oh my God! So comfy,_  she wriggled.  _When I get back to earth, I'm going to spend a solid week just lying in my bed._  Thoughts of home brought some reluctant sobriety.  _No one can ever know what I did with him last night_ , she inhaled, suddenly feeling entirely awake.  _No problem, because it's never happening again!_

Setting her feet on the floor below, she exited the bed and headed for the bathroom, aware that she probably reeked of Kaiser to any noses sensitive enough to pick it up. After cleaning herself off, Bulla slid into her bodysuit and chest piece and left the room, eager to get some nourishment in her belly.

"Morning Fern," she greeted genially, holding out her tray while the teen filled it up with steaming beige coloured goop.

"Hey Bulla," Fern returned with equal positivity, upturned eyes twinkling at the heiress. "What happened yesterday? You left so suddenly, I thought maybe you were mad about what I said about General Turles… If you were, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"Of course I wasn't upset with you!" Bulla flapped her hand to dismiss her concern. "I just needed to take care of something is all."

"Oh. Is everything sorted out now then?" Fern tilted her head, showing genuine interest in Bulla's plight.

"Uh...yep!" she laughed nervously. "Catch you later!" Bulla spun on her heel, seeking an available spot in the cafeteria.  _Speak of the devil_. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at the sight of the aforementioned general hunching over his tray, stabbing at his food like a chimp. "Good morning," she exhaled, setting her food down next to him. He stared at her, halting his meal. She observed him warily in turn as she slowly lowered herself down.  _Does he know already?!_  Bulla held her breath until Turles finally turned away and continued picking at his breakfast.

They ate in silence for a minute or so before Bulla sensed a powerful energy approaching the cafeteria, " _Fuck,"_ she muttered under her breath, causing her neighbour to glance at her out of the corner of his eye, a fleeting twitch of curiosity

A few moments later, Nappa appeared, attention falling straight on the duo. He stomped over and sat down thunderously, a clang shooting through her ears as her metal tray shuddered. He clasped his hands together, resting them on the table while he bored into her. Or so it felt.

She opted to stare at the back of a nearby soldier's head.

"Shall I leave you two alone?" Nappa broke the silence, earning himself a deadly glare from his fellow Saiyan. Despite herself, Bulla snorted rather ungracefully, amused at the realisation that Turles may have been even more bothered by the taunt than she was.

"Why?" Bulla countered, a mischievous glint forming in her aquamarine orbs. "Are you self conscious about being the weakest one at the table?" Turles coughed from her left while Nappa's expression emphatically dropped. Before he had a chance to react, she added, "Nice fighting by the way," giving the younger general a nudge as she turned her head to face him. "You're stronger than I expected."

"Same to you." He plunged his spoon into the unidentifiable mass in front of him. "You're not so bad... for a half-breed."

She couldn't help but bubble at the seemingly innocuous comment.  _I'm totally beginning to crack this egg._

"Stop looking at me like that," he grumbled after a few moments, keeping his gaze averted while she stared at him merrily. "I'm serious," he frowned. "You're killing my appetite."

This only caused her laughter to come forth as she continued to watch him with childlike glee.

"I heard about your scuffle yesterday." Nappa readjusted in his seat, apparently letting her remark go, though still watching her with the emptiness that told her he certainly hadn't warmed up to her all that much.

 _Yet,_ she promised herself.  _Bulla Briefs can win over anyone._

"It seems the young Prince has taught you a thing or two," he continued.

"He has." She finally relented and shifted her attention to the even meatier Saiyan. "You know, Nappa," Bulla inhaled, a distant smile forming. "My dad's actually spoken about you before."

"Has he now," he mumbled, crossing his arms and leaning back to regard her. "What does he have to say about his old guard, I wonder."

Bulla absently rearranged the food in her plate. "Well, I can't remember if he used your name… But back when I was a girl and still learning the ropes, I asked him where he first picked up all those moves." Nappa leaned forward ever so slightly. "He said a lot of it was taught to him by his attendant. I'm guessing that's you?"

She caught a glimpse of a smirk tease at the end of his mouth before it disappeared as quickly as it came. "I taught that son of a bitch everything I knew," he responded gruffly. She could see the deep-seated scorn returning. "And this is how that ungrateful swine showed his appreciation."

"He's a royal," Turles spat, tone laced with vitriol. "What did you expect?"

Bulla scoffed and gave him a shove.

"If it makes you feel better," she attempted, observing Nappa's expression carefully. "He's a completely different person now. He'd never do something like that to one of his own. Except maybe Goku... but their dynamic is sorta special."

"It doesn't make me feel better," he said flatly.

Bulla couldn't help the disappointment that needled through her. "Going against you almost felt like fighting my dad at some points," she confessed, feeling a slight pull in her chest. "If it's alright with you…" She gazed up at him, suddenly feeling especially homesick. "I'd like a rematch. One that Raditz won't interfere with." He met her gaze with a faintly arched eyebrow. "I'd love to fight the man who helped shape my father as the extraordinary fighter he's become."

Nappa didn't respond, although she was almost sure she could see the tiny wheels getting to work behind his eyes. Perhaps a small part of him still felt something for the guy - they'd spent a lifetime in each other's company after all.  _Mom always said men are physical creatures,_ she weighed, strategizing ways to win the burly veteran over.  _And that it applies doubly to Saiyans._ A blush hit her cheeks as memories of the previous night's escapades flashed through her.  _I guess she was right._

"Sorry, Turles." Bulla decided it was time for a subject change. "But I'm pretty sure daddy had nothing to say about you. You were obviously way more forgettable than Nappa," she teased, this time eliciting a 'Ha!' from the bald-headed giant. "I want an apology for that royal comment by the way."

He turned to look at her as though she were completely loopy.

"I mean it," she insisted, holding her spoon to her mouth. "Otherwise I'm going to keep smiling at you."

Turles ignored her threat and kept eating, but she could see his jaw becoming progressively more tense as she kept her jovial face on the surly soldier. Finally, he dropped his cutlery in exasperation before twisting in his seat and wiping a rough hand over her eyes, causing her to burst into girlish laughter while she squirmed out of his reach.

"Ew, where have those hands been?" she giggled, swatting him away.

"Word on the ship is: all over you," he returned, demeanour notably softening as he continued to smother her. "Filthy earthling."

Bulla threw her head back as she cackled at the ceiling, rapidly forgetting that she'd come here to eat, not appease or provoke high ranking military personnel. She soon felt the increasingly familiar energy of everyone's favourite leader as he strolled through the doors and headed straight for their table.

"Okay, okay!" she coughed, already feeling jittery. "You win. I'm too hungry to put up a fight." The heiress couldn't help but pause at the markedly lighter expression Turkes' face held, even sporting a smile that, for once, didn't look like it secretly suggested mayhem.  _These Saiyans…_  she allowed herself to dream.  _The potential is there._

"Vegeta taught you to his Galick Gun," Nappa commented from the opposite side of the table, interrupting her train of thought while Raditz sat down next to him. "I should have recognised your fighting style sooner. I was so focused on the match, nothing could have been further from my mind than Prince Vegeta."

"Mhm," Bulla chewed, returning her cutlery to her tray. "He's been training me since before I can even remember. I could fly before I could walk," she winked.

Nappa nodded, seemingly making his own mental notes. "How powerful is he now?"

"He's amazing." The heiress beamed at being able to talk about her father's prowess so openly. "His strength rivals the gods."

"Is that some sort of earth expression?" Turles asked, apparently more curious about the old prince than he initially let on.

"Nope, it's exactly as it sounds," Bulla answered earnestly. "He's battled Lord Beerus and lived." Both generals stopped eating.  _That's exactly the response I was hoping for_ , she thought smugly.

"How did he acquire this strength?" Raditz interjected with folded arms. "He was nowhere near being able to face a God of Destruction the last time I saw him."

She offered a coy smile, becoming increasingly flushed at the simple eye contact. "He found something worth fighting for outside of himself."

* * *

"Just because I slept with you once- Okay, twice. Okay, three times! Doesn't mean it's happening again, do you understand me?" Bulla declared, swelling with conviction. Too bad the room was empty, and the person the message was intended for was all the way on the other side of the ship. She was sitting on the edge of his mattress, priming herself for the brutal slap of truth she was about to lay on the forthright Saiyan. No doubt, it would shatter his world to pieces and render him entirely heartbroken.  _I can't have a repeat of last night, so he'll just have to get over it._

The complexity of the situation grew due to Bulla's unwavering decision to stay in his suite. She hated the dormitories - the beds were gross, the soldiers were way too comfortable around each other and the rooms absolutely reeked of sex and sweat.

She wasn't willing to leave the luxury of his private residence, but at the same time, she didn't want him to be under any false impression about her motivations either.

When the door eventually opened, he stepped in without a word, not even sparing her a glance while her own stomach flipped at the sight of him.

"Done for the day, Kaiser?" Bulla teased from the bed, leaning into her hands while she watched him unclip his cape at his closet.  _Keep it casual, princess._  He glanced over to her briefly but said nothing. "You should let me wear it." She earned herself a dull look.

He stalked over to her, tail loose, hand reaching straight for her zipper. "Whoa, cowboy," she chuckled in surprise, dodging his fingers. "Don't I even get a 'Hello, how was your day'?" His response was to exhale through his nose in frustration and repeat the action.

"I want to tell you someth-" Bulla voiced before getting cut off by a guttural growl.

"Do you ever shut up?" he spat.

She gasped before pressing her lips together and slapping him right across his jerk face. He glared back at her, dumbfounded, before slipping a dark smile and launching himself at the heiress, sending her onto her back with a shriek.

Bulla's determination instantly dissolved when she felt powerful hands squeezing at her sides and a ravenous mouth currently attempting to eat her whole. This time, she reached for her zipper all on her own, fumbling behind her back to find it. She let out a yelp when she felt dangerously hot hands at her neck, followed by a loud rip as Raditz tore her skinsuit right off, leaving the top half of her get-up entirely ruined.

She didn't have time to mourn its loss, however, as he yanked the rest off so hastily, it set her head spinning like a top. He peeled off his own armour and began undoing the zip on his suit when Bulla heard a beep, followed by a crackly voice sounding from her left. She almost screamed, thinking there was someone else in the room, but Raditz didn't falter.

He leaned over her, causing her to hold her breath as she felt his weight pinning her to the mattress while he scratched through his bedside drawer. Her eyes traced over the underside of his jaw in begrudging appreciation and, impulsively, she planted a soft kiss against his Adam's apple.

"Raditz." He spoke evenly into the strange device she'd found on her first morning once he brought it to his ear. She could hear another voice coming through from the other side but couldn't make out what they were saying in the slightest. "Yes, I can talk." He pushed into his fist and kneeled into the bed, slowly making his way backwards until his feet were back on the floor. Bulla crawled after him, cheeky smile growing as a dastardly thought entered her mind.

"You're certain?"

While he continued his conversation, Bulla brought her mouth to his neck and dropped her hand to his crotch, eyeing him curiously to see how long it would take him to crack.

"Stop," he warned, expression serious while he gazed down at her. This only caused the heiress to snicker. "No, not you," he said to the earpiece. She didn't let up though, finding this new game way too amusing. He grabbed her bottom wrist suddenly, giving her a start.

... _Huh?_

She tried to pull away, but his grip tightened, eliciting a frown when she told herself she should have been able to free her hand by now.

Apparently done with his exchange, Raditz threw the gadget to his bed. "That wasn't funny," he said sternly, loosening his grasp.

"I disagree," Bulla giggled girlishly.

"When the scouter is on, no messing around."

"Yes, sir," she mockingly saluted. All humour left when she saw him pull his armour back on and head for the door, however. "Wait, you're leaving?" she questioned, still kneeling into the edge of the bed.  _I didn't even get to tell him he doesn't have another chance with me._

"Yes."

"But… we were in the middle of something," she responded, disappointment rising to the surface, feeling like a child with a burst balloon.

"I've got more important things to do," he stated bluntly before exiting the room and slamming the door shut.

Bulla stared on in shock.  _I don't think… any guy has ever walked out on me like that before?_ she pondered in disbelief.  _I mean… he was rock hard!_

* * *

"Why wasn't I told about this?" Bulla held her fists to her hips, frowning at the man in front of her.

"I'm telling you now," he said impassively, pressing his scouter to his left ear.

"It never crossed your mind to mention it to me in, I don't know, the past week that I've been sleeping in your bed?" she argued.

He reared his head, thick black brows drawing together in confusion. "What does that have to do with anything?" Raditz tapped a button on the side and paused, seemingly waiting for something. She could tell he was barely paying attention to her griping.

Bulla let out an exasperated sigh.  _Why am I even surprised?_ She rolled her eyes at her own foolishness. "So how long are we going to be here for?" she exhaled, dropping her arms.

"Two days," he answered after a series of mechanical clicks and beeps sounded from the device.

"Is that all?" Bulla chewed the inside of her lip. It had been roughly three weeks since she'd woken up in Turles' bed and Bulla was definitely beginning to feel the restlessness creep. The sudden news that they were making a pitstop was a welcome one - too bad Raditz only decided to tell her  _after_  the ship had landed and everyone else was already making their way to the exits.

 _Typical male,_ she grumbled.  _Everything's on a need to know basis._ Another thought entered her mind: Maybe this wasn't so much a man thing as it was an 'I really don't give a shit about you' thing. Raditz really had the 'no strings' concept down to a fine art. More than once Bulla had to soothe her ego after being reminded that he really was all business outside of his sheets.

"Yes, that's all," he replied plainly, closing his closet door. "Stay close if you don't want to end up getting left behind. We have a strict schedule to stick to."

"You'd just leave without me?" she gasped.

He was already heading towards the door, not even bothering to cast a backwards glance as she skipped after him.

_Jerk!_

"So what's this place like?" Bulla queried, clutching her hands behind her back while she walked alongside the aloof warrior.

"Like every other planet," he responded dully.

Bulla let out another sigh.  _Right, this isn't Trunks,_  she had to remind herself.  _This guy has travelled the galaxy for years, it's not like it's remotely exciting for him._

Deciding that Raditz was not the one to find non-carnal related entertainment in, the heiress bounced off when she spotted two sets of navy capes ahead. Suddenly feeling the urge to relish in a childhood pastime, she sprinted forward and hopped onto Nappa's back, draping her arms over his neck and squeezing her legs around his waist.  _Sorry_   _buddy, but we're going to get along whether you like it or not._

Immediately, he reached his hands back to swat. Bulla made a mental note to consider the fact that the Saiyans may be more primed for guerilla attacks than earthlings are and catching one off guard might not be the safest move, especially when said Saiyan's base power wasn't too far beneath her own.

"Full speed ahead!" She pointed outside the massive doors. Once he realised who had snuck up on him, Nappa seemed to cease his fussing. "You know," Bulla spoke up. "You would've made a pretty kickass nanny for Trunks and I if you had made a life for yourself on earth with my dad."

This innocuous comment seemed to get a rise out the man to her left, as Turles instantly burst into coarse laughter. "Piccolo was really nice, and, looking back, amazingly patient," she kept going. "But I think a Saiyan babysitter would have been out of this world." Bulla leaned her face forward over his shoulder, bringing it in line with his own while she continued her babbling. "Can you imagine all the fun we would have had? Taking us to amusement parks, joining me at the mall and carrying my shopping bags, being my chauffeur to and from school. Oh my God, my friend's would've loved you!"

"What self-respecting Saiyan, would do anything close to what you've just described?" Nappa scowled back at her. "It sounds like torture."

"Daddy did it all the time!" Bulla chirped, leaning her cheek against her arm while she recalled her many days out with her dear father. "Never happily, but he did it nonetheless. You'd get used to it eventually." She poked him in the cheek before resting her palm on his shiny head.

"Hah!" Turles barked. "He barely sounds like a man, let alone a Saiyan."

"I dare you to say that to his face," Bulla giggled, yanking on his cape and causing him to stumble. He retaliated by tugging her ponytail, abruptly jerking her head back. She loosened her left foot from Nappa's middle and gave a hefty shove to the combative general in response, causing him to grab her ankle and pull her right off the older Saiyan's back. "You-!" She interrupted herself when she caught a peek of the outside world as Nappa plodded down the ramp.

The ship was surrounded by dry grass, a soft breeze sending the stalks eastward. The dirt beneath her boot was loose and fine, though not quite as desert-like as Bhander. Wherever they were, it appeared to be late afternoon - the sky already casting a fiery, red haze while the sun slowly sank towards the horizon. Hoards of soldiers were teeming past her in a flurry of excited conversation. From what she could tell, she was the only one marvelling at the new environment, leading her to believe that this was not the Saiyan's first time visiting the mysterious planet. Silently, Bulla continued walking between the two men, following when they took to the sky and sailed towards the city up ahead.

Bulla squinted while she held her forearm out in front of her face, flying faster than she usually would in order to keep up with the two generals. Ordinarily she preferred to keep a pace that wouldn't leave her hair in complete shambles, but, obviously, such concerns didn't exist for this stiff-haired race.

The three of them touched down once they reached the outskirts of what looked to be a major urban settlement. There must have been hundreds of tall buildings, although this place seemed decidedly less affluent than Advent. The streets were dirty, litter was piling up in the gutters and, from what Bulla could see, the vast majority of the structures appeared vacant and vandalised. "What is this place?" she scrunched her nose at the putrid odour hitting her nostrils - some vile combination of decaying food, decade-old rubbish and industrial waste.

Turles turned his head towards her. "Not your usual hangout, princess?" He smirked in amusement at the heiress' disgust. Bulla simply deepened her frown. "This is Soul," he eventually answered. "As in: anyone who had one before will find themselves without one by the time they leave."

Bulla gasped and planted her feet simultaneously, aquamarine orbs wide with apprehension. "Are you serious?" she exclaimed, eliciting a gruff chuckle from the larger of the two men. "Is there, like, some kind of black magic going on here? I'd like to keep my soul if I can help it, thank you very much." She felt something bump into her back, almost sending her tumbling forward before she caught her balance. Bulla spotted a handful of younger soldiers racing merrily towards the city centre, wide grins and hair flying.

A couple of beeps came from Nappa's earpiece, prompting him to press his finger to the side. After a few moments of silence, he spoke up. "Got it," he said, before shooting off into the rapidly darkening sky. In no time she could feel his energy a good mile or two away. Tailing Turles, Bulla considered how she would spend her two precious days off the massive spaceship. It didn't take long for the Saiyans to spread themselves out, each of them apparently as eager to stretch their legs as she was.

Behind her, she could feel Raditz catching up, eventually landing on her right. They continued down a dank alleyway that set her fine hairs on end and she almost jumped right out of her skin when she felt something wrapping around her ankle. With a girlish scream, Bulla immediately yanked it back. Beneath an unassuming pile of trash was a soiled limb, gripping the heiress' leg with a stubborn grasp. Before she knew it, Turles threw a weighted kick at the still-hidden individual underneath.

"No!" Bulla let out a cry when she heard the muffled groan from the street-dweller. "Why did you do that?" she scolded, crouching down to shove aside some of the debris. "He's so much weaker than you are."

"Because he's waste," Turles answered brusquely while he continued onward. "Just like the hill he's sitting under." Raditz hadn't even bothered to turn his head at the commotion.

The heiress' expression sank when she saw the decrepit state of the impoverished man the general had just shoved. Emaciated would be an understatement. His eyes bulged from how sunken the rest of his face was and she could see every protruding bone in his body. He was rubbing his chest, soothing the bruised area, while Bulla called out to the others. "Give me some money."

Neither responded.

"Did you hear me?" she demanded impatiently. "I need credits."

"Why?" Raditz muttered, disinterest clear.

"Because you jackasses abducted me without my wallet," she spat. "And I want to get this guy something to eat. It's the least we can do after your brute of a delegate damn near cracked a rib."

Both men came to a stop, Turles' face wearing a look of complete befuddlement while he stared at his superior. "Buy him a meal?" he laughed. "Were you dropped as a child?"

Bulla ignored him, opting instead to rest her palm on the man's bony shoulder. "I'm really sorry he hurt you," she spoke softly. "I don't have any money on me, but I'll try to bring some food back for you later, alright?"

He simply let out another groan while his mouth hung open, showing what few misaligned teeth he had left. She rose back up and stomped over to her new pair of travel companions. "You both suck," she declared.

Once they reached the opposite end of the alleyway, Bulla's eyes danced over her surroundings. Neon lights lined the street, most missing a bulb or two, and more locals were beginning to surface. " **Ohmygod** ," she blurted, snapping her head forward, blush immediately hitting her cheeks when her gaze unintentionally fell on two people partaking in a surprisingly intimate act for such a public space. Neither Saiyan batted an eye while her own skin crawled. " _Why don't they get a room?_ " she whispered.

"Probably spent all his money on having her for the next hour," Raditz answered, unfazed.

"What?" Bulla reared. "How do you know she's...for hire?" She chanced a glance further down the street, noting a few other women wearing similar outfits, beckoning passers-by. One stalked in front of Raditz, causing him to side-step while she proceeded to wipe her long finger down his chest plate as he made his way around her.

The heiress raised an eyebrow in interest. She had yet to see him respond to anyone's sexual advances, even her own most of the time.

The woman skipped after him, slinging her arms around his neck while she pressed her bosom into his armour. "Fuck off," he growled, prying her away. She didn't let up, however, and continued to lay her moves, presumably hoping to change his mind by licking at his neck.

Bulla couldn't help but snigger at his building frustration.  _Sorry ma'am, he never takes the bait when he's on the clock._

Suddenly a ball of ki formed in his left hand while he brought it to the woman's face, her cat-shaped eyes growing in fear as she slunk backwards, feet frozen in place.

"What are you doing?!" Bulla screamed, jerking his arm away and throwing him a horrified glare. The street-worker took her opportunity to flee, tearing down the darkened path, tall heels clacking into the night. "Were you seriously about to  _kill_ her?" The heiress was absolutely astounded at what she'd just witnessed. Never in her life had she seen anything so callous.

"Maybe. Maybe not," he smirked down at her, apparently rather entertained by her mortification. "I guess we'll never know."

Bulla looked to Turles, hoping to gauge his reaction and see if perhaps this was just some mean-spirited, but harmless Saiyan-style joke. His expression was blank, however.

"You know what you two are?" Bulla chastised, walking backwards while she berated the two warriors. "Bullies!" Her face wore a deep scowl while she pointed from one to the other. "You don't need to go threatening people, you know. Not if they've done nothing to warrant it."

"Raditz, can you make her stop?" Turles rolled his eyes.

"I've learned to drown her out," he responded simply, causing an exaggerated gasp from the heiress.

" _Drown me out?_ " she repeated back to him, now entirely irked. "You are such an asshole!" Bulla spun on the ball of her foot, ready to march off and make a dramatic exit when she suddenly found herself face to face with a remarkably human-looking figure. The first thing she saw was his sinister smile, followed by his prominent Roman nose. Bulla immediately threw her palms up, attempting to catch herself before she crashed right into him.

"Raditz, Turles," he nodded, pinching the edge of his dark-rimmed hat. "Always a pleasure." His face was littered with pockmarks, and she found his teeth were dangerously pointy when he widened his already wicked smirk.

_Okay, maybe not so human after all?_

She couldn't help but shiver in his presence. While he didn't strike her as being all that strong, something about the guy definitely raised her hackles. It probably didn't help that he was flanked by two massive, yet silent, suited bodyguards.

"Serce," Raditz greeted cooly, coming to a stop and folding his arms.

Bulla slowly backtracked towards the two men she was scolding only a few moments before.  _Rather the devil you know, right?_  she gulped. Serce, however, reached out a hand and grasped her fingers, sending a cascade of goosebumps all through her arm and down her spine. Instinctively she jerked back, but he tightened his grip.

"Is it just me, or are your soldiers getting lovelier?" He finally tore his gaze away from Bulla's face and lazily shifted his attention to the taller of the two men.

"She's not-" Turles started speaking, but quickly let out an 'oof' when Raditz smacked him in the chest with the back of his hand.

"Are we here to talk business or women?" Raditz interjected, tail already beginning to flick behind him. It required no prior knowledge for Bulla to realise that this gangster was far from being one of the Kaiser's favourite people.

Serce offered another knowing nod before raising his hands in concession. He signalled to the two burly men either side of him, causing them to post themselves either side of a nearby door, before gesturing to the Saiyans.

"Stay outside," Raditz told her while he and Turles made their way towards the building.

"No, let her join us," Serce smiled, waving her over.

"She'll be fine here," Raditz countered, giving her a firm look, which she took to mean,  _Listen to me, not him._

"I insist." The humour was slowly slipping from the slim man's expression while he clasped his fingers behind his back.

Raditz nodded to his general, prompting him to retrieve the confused heiress. " _Keep your mouth shut,_ " Turles instructed while he gripped her arm and walked her to the door. Bulla lifted her gaze to quickly establish where exactly she was heading. The building she was being led to was modestly-sized and derelict, the sign was flickering and most of the windows were broken.

Once inside, she noted that the floor was sticky under her boots and the room was filled with tables and chairs, though the lights were low.  _A restaurant maybe? Or a bar?_ There was a stage, suggesting live shows weren't uncommon, though the place was mostly empty, save for a few quiet patrons hanging near the walls.

The four of them continued through the main room until they reached a door that was opened by yet another imposing guard in a black suit. Making their way down the dark and narrow passageway, they finally came upon a quaint back room.

"As you well know, scouters stay at the door, thank you." Serce floated through the threshold while the two Saiyans removed the gadgets from their ears

Behind an intricately carved wooden screen were three worn leather couches. Raditz and Turles took one each, while Serce grabbed his own. Bulla began heading towards the tallest of the three men before she felt slim fingers circling her wrist.

"Please," Serce smiled, revealing an especially sharp set of canines. "Oblige a weary old man and keep me company." He patted the cushion next to him. Bulla immediately shot a glance to Raditz, though all he did was nod his head.

_Guess I better keep these guys happy?_

She joined the gangster on his loveseat while he popped the lid on a thick glass bottle next to him and poured out three drinks. The odour of ethanol was so potent, the heiress could smell it from her seat.

"So, gentlemen," he began, bringing his glass to his thin lips while Bulla's eyes darted around the room, carefully taking stock of her surroundings. "It's been too long, wouldn't you agree?"

"Not long enough," Raditz answered bluntly, causing the man in black to let out a husky laugh.

Bulla flinched when she felt his hand on her thigh, slowly dragging along the spandex. She threw a warning look to Raditz, aquamarine orbs bulging. Again, he gave a clipped nod.  _This better not go any further than this,_ she grumbled to herself while they continued to talk business.  _I don't care who this guy is to you, I'm not going to be treated like prized cattle on display for everyone to prod._

"As promised, the shipment is ready," she zoned back in to hear Serce state while he scratched around his end table, finding a lighter and igniting the end of his cigar. "Four hundred pieces, eight-hundred thousand."

"Eight hundred?" Raditz reared. "That wasn't the figure we agreed on. The last time we spoke, you assured us it would only come to six-eighty."

"Did I?" Serce tilted his head, snaking his hand behind Bulla's back and up towards her hairline. Her temper was beginning climb along with his opportunistic fingers, so she shimmied further along the sofa, hoping to make more distance before she snapped his hand clean off. This prompted him to shift his gaze to the heiress, causing the two others to do the same. "Well, if you only have six-eighty, you may need to add something else to the deal to make it worth my while," he offered a lazy shrug. "I have a business to run, you know. I can't keep doing charity work for you monkeys."

Bulla instantly sensed both Saiyans' energies spike as she felt Serce's palm grazing down her spine until it rubbed the fabric just above her rear, causing her to jump up in a hurry. "I can't help but notice you're missing a tail," he drawled while Bulla protectively clutched her hands to her back. "What a sight you are."

The heiress clenched her jaw, reminding herself of Turles' words before they entered.  _Keep it together, princess_ , she soothed.  _You know well enough by now not to interfere with business negotiations when they're currently on the table._ Reluctantly, she sat back down, but twisted her body so her back faced the corner of the sofa while her legs pointed to the man next to her.

He turned his head to regard Raditz once more. "Why don't you leave this one with me, and along with your six-eighty we'll call it even. I could fetch a fair sum for her around here."

Bulla's mouth flew open in horror while she drew in a sharp breath.

"Of course," Serce considered, scratching his chin. "I'd need to see the rest of her to ensure I'm getting my money's worth." He leisurely rolled his head to drink in the silently fuming princess. Her right hand was shaking as she fought to keep it at her side.  _I swear this guy is about to swallow all his stupid pointy teeth._

She sank deeper into the arm of the sofa when he leaned closer, a single bony hand gliding up her side. In agitation, Bulla looked to the others. Turles was clearly going to be no help - all he was doing was watching the scene with a cocked eyebrow. "Raditz..." Bulla cautioned.

Finally, he rose from his seat. "The deal is off," was all the Saiyan leader said before marching towards the door, much to Bulla's relief. Turles was close behind.

"Why don't you stay," Serce suggested quietly, slithering further along her slinking form. "I guarantee I can offer you a better bed to sleep in than anything than those peasants ever could." He waved a dismissive hand towards her fellow Saiyans. "Something tells me you're better suited to the finer things in life."

She responded by smashing her forehead into his own before rolling off the couch and onto the floor. "Ah!" he groaned, rubbing his fingers over the reddening skin. "Nasty girl." Once she was on her feet Bulla followed after the two men she'd entered with. "The deal is certainly not off," Serce hissed to the Kaiser, coming up behind her. "Unless I say it is. Your shipment is already here, so either pay up or I'll simply take what's owed to me."

"I said the deal is off," Raditz repeated, keeping a watchful eye on the mountain of a bouncer who had just appeared in the doorway.

"You know better than to cross me, monkey," Serce warned, grabbing him by the arm.

"I could say the same for you," Raditz returned darkly, expression becoming entirely cold while he lowered his face in challenge.

After a few moments of tense eye contact, Serce dropped his gaze. "Fine, six-eighty."

"What part of 'the deal is off' don't you understand?" Raditz growled, bunching the man's shirt in his hand. "I've had enough of your bullshit over the years. Consider this our last meeting."

"You may want to close your eyes," Turles whispered to the heiress while she watched the heated exchange. Snapping to attention, Bulla hastily slipped between the two men, letting out a faint squeak when she caught Raditz' fist between her palms just before it plunged through her chest plate and right into her heart.

She glared up at him, breath ragged, the vital muscle beating heavily behind her ribcage as adrenaline surged all through her.  _He is strong,_  she winced.  _Definitely stronger than the others._  The look of bewilderment on his face gave her pause. For a split second, his features softened and she dared think she might have seen a fleeting glimpse of humanity behind those dark eyes while he glared back at her, entirely perplexed.

In this moment, Bulla realised she had never spent so much time staring into the Raditz' abyss, and she couldn't remember a time where his gaze was so fixed to her own.

"Bulla…?" he finally uttered.

She forced his fist back, spun on her boot and delivered a fierce punch to Serce's cheek, sending him to the floor. "That's for even thinking about touching me." She spat on his limp, groaning form before shoving the bouncer aside. "If you say you're done, then I'm happy to leave," she called out, storming back towards the club's entrance, blue hair flying behind her. She pivoted suddenly, sending a stream right passed Raditz and Turles' faces as they watched it burst through a closed door at the end of the passageway. Beyond the gaping hole was a knocked out henchman, flat on his back, suit scorched.

"How did you-?" Raditz began, but she didn't stick around to hear the end of his sentence

Unsurprisingly, they were met with more guards once they reached the main room. With a surge of ki, Bulla sent each of them flying towards the room's perimeter. The two watching the front door barrelled in, immediately equipping their laser pistols and opening fire.

Bulla shrieked when a beam grazed her side, incinerating a chunk of her bodysuit. In a blink, she cast two energy balls, one to each gun, before rushing towards one of the guards and sinking her elbow into his sizable gut. When he dropped to his knees with a wheeze, she shifted her attention to his partner. He didn't even bother putting up a fight, simply showing his palms in retreat.

Raditz entered the room behind her, stepping over an incapacitated bouncer and taking in the scene before him, shaking his head in confusion.

"See that?" Bulla stood up straight, hands on her hips. "You can stop people without killing them. Take notes."

Raditz held an open palm towards one of the unconscious henchmen, ki ball slowly forming. "That's a good way to make a vengeful enemy," he voiced. "Dead men don't seek payback."

"Stop!" Bulla quickly grasped his hand, slipping her slim fingers into the grooves between his own meaty digits. "It doesn't need to be this way," she breathed.

Once again, the two found themselves in a battle of wills, blue eyes downturned while she silently pleaded with him. She watched as his gaze dropped to their intertwined hands, noting the bouncing of his Adam's apple when he took a swallow. Using her fleeting opportunity, the heiress maintained her grip and led him towards the exit. "You too," she said, wrapping her fingers around Turles upper arm and dragging him along at the same time.

Once outside, Bulla swivelled on the ball of her foot and gave each Saiyan a simultaneous, firm slap, eliciting a growl from the shorter of the two while he held a palm to his reddening cheek. "How could you idiots just sit there and watch while he manhandled me like that!" she fumed, wearing her scariest Bulma scowl. "He was so gross, but I behaved myself, because  **you**  -!" She poked Turles in the sternum. "Told me to stay quiet."

He gave nothing more than a snarl.

Bulla turned to Raditz, arms folded. "I suppose you expect me to be grateful that you eventually stepped in when he said he wanted to  _sell me on the black market._ " She certainly wasn't feeling gracious right now.

"You're probably worth more than what he was offering," Raditz answered, ducking when she took another swing at his face.

Bulla kept her mouth shut but let out an audible scream of frustration.  _Kami, I swear I didn't know how good I had it out here with Trunks and Goten._ Instinctively, her gaze fell to Turles, a shiver running through her when their locked eyes.

"What?" he snapped, crossing his arms. She could feel her temper easing and transferred her attention to the Kaiser, who was watching her with a look of mild scepticism.

"Nothing," she finally muttered, palm finding its way to the back of her neck. "Are we done here? I'm hungry."

* * *

"You know," Bulla hiccuped, raising her mug to her mouth. "The last time I stayed in a place like this, I almost died." She glanced around the tavern, head swirling as she did so. Bulla and a handful of other Saiyans were sitting on some cushions on the floor at a low wooden table, enjoying their evening of freedom. It seemed most were opting to crash at this humble stop for the night, the heiress included. "Watch who does your cooking."

"You never stop talking," Turles groaned, emptying the contents of his cup into his mouth. "I'm not surprised someone resorted to poisoning you to shut you up permanently."

Bulla scoffed, lifting her nose before continuing her story. "They poisoned me because I was from out of town, thank you very much. I'm sure they all loved my personality outside of that," she added with a wink to the rest of the table, earning herself a few chortles. When she rested her palm on the floor, she felt something grazing her wrist. Presuming it to be a fly, she lifted her hand and swatted it away, only to find it had returned when she put it down again. Flopping her head to the side, Bulla found it hadn't been anything close to a winged insect. Instead, she spotted an unexpectedly loose Saiyan tail. She raised an eyebrow at Raditz while he returned her playful expression with a wry smirk.  _Is this his way of flirting?_  she snorted. Bulla turned away and raised her hand to the barmaid for another drink.

Her eyes honed in on a bowl of exotic snacks further down the length of the table. They were definitely calling her name, and, in her entirely rational state, Bulla could think of no better way to get her hands on the tempting morsels than crawling across the bench to claim them.

She didn't seem to make a connection between her feline-like stalking and the sudden emergence of cheers and whoops, but she let out a whimper when she felt an arm circle her waist and lift her up, dragging her away from her prize.  _So close._ She reached out as far as she could for her bowl of goodies, to no avail. Bulla blacked out for a brief moment, but came to a few seconds later to find herself watching the underside of someone's face. Spiky black hair was the second thing she noticed.

"Where are you taking me?" she whined, nestling her face into his arm to avoid the assault of the hallway lights.

"To your room," Turles answered plainly.

"Why?" she moaned. "I was having fun out there."

"I could tell," he rumbled. "And so could everyone else."

"I hear this isn't the first time you've carried me to bed," she snickered, tracing circles over his bicep with her fingertip. "I bet you love having your hands all over me, don't you." Bulla beamed up at him but he didn't dignify her with an answer. She didn't miss the groan that escaped his throat at her teasing, however, only causing her to giggle even harder. "You better not try anything funny mister," she mumbled, closing her eyes again as she dozed to the soothing rocking of his movement.

"You must think I'm completely suicidal," he muttered. She wanted to ask him what he meant by that, but passing out was easier so she did that instead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys had a good Christmas! I'm still away from home, so I'll be a bit delayed for a while yet, but I managed to squeeze in some edits for this chapter during spare moments.
> 
> It's the last day of 2018 where I am, so Happy New Year to you all!


	16. Come Undone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a big one, but whatever you do, get to the end. I think you'll find it's worth it.

_Blood sputtered out of him, hitting the dirt next to his flattened palm while he hovered on his hands and knees. Before he knew it, he felt a foot collide with his ribs, sending him rolling along the gravel. Even with the protective armour, the weight of the blow left him winded._

" _You're worthless," a cutting voice tore into him._

_He begrudgingly opened his eyes to see a pair of white boots, royal blue spandex and a deceivingly compact body standing over him - arms folded and iconic disgusted sneer adorning his miserable face._

" _We're all worthless, prince," Raditz countered with a cough, wincing as he attempted to push himself up._

" _Some more than others," Vegeta persisted, holding his foot over Raditz' unwound tail. "Especially those who can't follow simple orders. Do I really need to remind you what happens when you defy me?"_

" _No." He forced down the urge to clutch his side as he stood back up to his full height, refusing to give his comrade the satisfaction of knowing he'd landed an impactful kick._

_Nappa sat near the campfire, eating his charred meat. He didn't even bother looking up - it was hardly an unusual spectacle. By now, he would have known better than to get involved, lest he invite the prince's disdain upon himself._

_Raditz levitated off the ground, resentment dripping out of him as he glared at his superior. The prince responded by waving a dismissive hand and spinning on the ball of his foot, returning to his meal._

Bastard,  _Raditz grumbled to himself as he soared through the night sky._ That diminutive fuck pisses me off so much, I really  _could_  kill someone.  _He flew over the city lights of the nearby settlement, scanning the shingled rooves before coming to a stop and touching down in an alleyway outside the local tavern. Slipping into a dark corner, far from the street lights and kitchen windows, he set himself up against the sandstone wall and rested his eyes, relishing the rare moment where he wasn't under someone's thumb._ Now, we wait.

_No one noticed him while he observed the comings and goings of staff and patrons. Not the busboy dumping the kitchen trash into the massive bins, nor the overworked cook whose irises were painted red while he simultaneously puffed on three fat cigarettes during his break. Raditz watched them all, silently musing how pathetically simple their lives were._

_Finally, the door flew open to reveal the one he'd been waiting for. He heard her exhale as she wiped her brow with the back of her hand and untied her apron from her waist. Soundlessly, he stalked out of the shadows._

_She jumped back with a start when she realised she wasn't alone, before a soft smile appeared on her tired features. "Raditz," she breathed. "I didn't think I'd see you again."_

_His tail thrashed behind him while he approached her, reaching for her cheek. She gazed up at him warmly before he brushed his lips to hers, tenderly stroking his thumb along her jaw. She was still smiling while she kissed him back, but he soon felt her stiffen as his hand lowered and wrapped around her delicate neck._

" _What are you do-" she croaked into his mouth, her entire body going rigid. Tears built in her eyes as his grip tightened. "Please don't," she managed to squeak._

_Then he heard the all too familiar click._

_He was still holding her limp head in his hands as the light left her eyes._

* * *

When Bulla woke, she was in a black room under a thin sheet, still dressed in full armour. Pressing into her hands, she stumbled towards the wall and flicked on the light. Her room was tiny, she was disappointed to find. Only large enough for a single bed, and even then it wasn't even raised off the floor. She couldn't tell how long she'd slept for, but she still felt some minor wooziness.

On exiting her suite, she didn't even need to stretch her feelers to figure out where everyone was, since their blaring voices carried easily through the dark, winding passageway. She reached a door and pressed her ear to it, catching the occasional muffled utterance coming through from the other side. Pulling it open ever so slightly, she peeked through with a single aquamarine eye.

The tavern was still full of Saiyans. Bulla, for once in her life, was the lightweight while everyone else continued enjoying the evening's festivities. She could even spy Fern having a giggle in the corner with one of the younger soldiers. What really caught the heiress' attention, however, was the large table she'd occupied earlier surrounded by merry faces and booming with warm laughter. She spotted Raditz leaning back into his hands, smiling, for a change, and nodding along to some story being shared by one of the low-rankers.

Quietly, Bulla slipped through the door and set herself up against the wall, enjoying playing the role of observer while she continued to watch the heart-warming camaraderie of the jovial soldiers. She couldn't help but smile when a few rose from their cushions and approached their Kaiser while he shooed them away, arms outstretched. One Saiyan took his left side while the other took his right, and they lifted him off the ground, earning a cheer from the rest of the table. Turles watched with equal amusement, grinning lazily before pushing himself up and joining the tom-foolery.

 _They really do love him_. Bulla felt her stomach flutter at the sight.  _If Saiyans are capable of love that is._  She could see the adoration in the eyes of all his men and women.  _Just like Goku_ , Bulla sighed.  _How can you not love a Son?_

Try as she might, Bulla couldn't tear her eyes off the Saiyan leader. Maybe it was the height, maybe it was the hair, or maybe it was simply the way he carried himself, but something about the man was dangerously magnetic. He drove her up the wall most hours of the day with his bluntness and complete disregard for human sentimentalities and customs, but when he wasn't tipping her temper over the edge, he was driving her crazy in entirely different ways. All it would take was a simple look, and she'd find herself burning for his touch.  _That son of a bitch is like a bad habit_. She ran her fingers through her hair.  _And I don't think I'm ready to quit him yet._

She peeled herself off the wall and sauntered over to the rest of the group, reclaiming her earlier spot between the two highest ranking men of the table.

"Welcome back," Caya greeted, offering the heiress a broad smile.

"Thank you," Bulla returned, before patting Turles' thigh and bringing her mouth to his ear. "And thank  _you_ for getting me out of here earlier before I completely embarrassed myself," she added in a whisper.

"It might've been a bit late for that." He brought his mug to his mouth, but Bulla caught the discreet glance he cast the Kaiser.

"So the prince's daughter can't hold her liquor," Rhubo teased from further down the table.

"I guess by Saiyan standards, some might consider me a cheap date?" Bulla winked, raising her glass to him. The table erupted in rowdy laughter while Bulla chuckled to herself, holding the rim of her vessel to her lips as her eyes danced over the rest of table's occupants. The air was so easy between the Saiyans, she'd long noticed. The occasional spat wasn't unheard of, but they all appeared to bounce back quickly. There didn't seem to be any room for grudges amongst this tight-knit clan.

Turles leaned over to her, reeking of booze. "Don't go giving them any ideas now," he drawled quietly. Bulla couldn't suppress the grin that spread across her face. This was the least restrained she'd ever seen the man, and it made her positively giddy to observe him this loosened-up. She threw her palm to her mouth, muffling her giggles as she shoved him away.

Just as she had earlier in the evening, Bulla felt something licking at her arm. This time she knew better and leisurely rolled her head to the side, offering Raditz a coy glance. Once again, a lazy smirk adorned his features while he watched her through heavy lids. She felt her insides warm until an involuntary shiver rippled through her.

Bulla noticed a few soldiers whispering amongst themselves at the end of the table and watched in interest as they threw their own mischievous glances in her direction. Caya soon pressed into her hands and stood up straight, nodding to one of her underlings, ever-present smile cemented on her features as she stalked towards the heiress.

"... What's going on?" Bulla laughed nervously, already showing her palms and leaning away as Caya and Drago approached. She felt her spine bump into Turles' shoulder and quickly grabbed his arm, shuffling behind him as a means of hopeful protection.

"Nice try, princess," Caya chuckled, swiping for her leg and managing to grasp Bulla's ankle. "But he won't save you. Will you, General?"

Bulla shrieked, managing to wriggle free as she dragged herself along the floorboards before hopping to her feet and dashing to the other side of the room. She ran to Nappa, who was in the middle of conversation with his own delegates. "Nappa, help!" the heiress managed to get out between laughs, grabbing on to his waist and using him as her personal shield, shimmying side to side to dodge Drago's grabs.

She stuck her tongue out when she realised her impromptu plan had actually given the man pause. Drago watched Nappa cautiously as he stared him down. "That's right, buddy," Bulla taunted playfully. "I've got this guy on my side."

A smile cracked on the older general's face. "No you don't." He reached behind himself and scooped around her back, presenting her to the lower-ranked soldier without any further question.

"Nappa, no!" she protested. "What are they going to do to me?"

"It's time for your initiation!" Caya declared, stumbling towards her, wiping her lips with her sleeve. "You're one of us now whether you like it or not."

"Okay, cool," Bulla placated, coughing between giggles as her eyes frantically darted around the room, seeking anyone she could count on. "Can I be initiated from over here?" She pressed her face to Nappa's armour and wrapped her arms around his middle, holding on for dear life. He peeled her off, and the heiress soon felt a muscular limb squeezing around her waist, pulling her away. "Caya, don't! Please!" Bulla was in hysterics while the squad captain dragged her back toward the others, her head racing circles around the room.

"You don't even know what we want to do to you," Caya chastised, heaving Bulla over her shoulder and marching towards the front door.

"And I don't want to!" Bulla yelled, spotting Rhubo's extended hand and reaching out for it, tumbling into his lap when he pulled her down from his less than sober Captain.

She draped her arm around his shoulder. "Looks like your soldiers are more loyal to me than you, Captain Caya," she snickered.

"Oh, you'll pay for that," Caya pointed to her underling, eyes narrowing.

" _You owe me one,"_ Rhubo whispered into Bulla's ear before lifting her at the waist and transplanting her from his legs to the floor, standing tall to square off with his superior and immediately getting tackled to the ground when Caya threw herself at him.

The entire table roared with laughter at the antics of Caya's squad, the heiress included. She held her fingers to her mouth, unable to contain herself. While the scuffle continued, Bulla turned her head and caught the Kaiser's gaze. He wasn't laughing along with the others, but she could tell he was certainly amused. He wasn't watching the fight, however. Leaning back into his hand, his dark orbs were firmly fixed on Bulla, and it left her feeling uncharacteristically self-conscious. She looked away briefly before meeting his gaze once more, cheeks warming.

Discreetly, he patted the floor next to him.

 _He misses me, does he?_ she thought smugly.  _Looks like he's not as impervious as he pretends to be._

Their silent conversation was interrupted when a puffed Rhubo returned to his spot alongside her, grazing his hand along her back as he took a swig from his mug. "Good to see you're still in one piece," Bulla chuckled, twisting to look at her unexpected saviour. "Caya must have taken pity on you."

"Not a chance. She's going to take it out on me during training," he shrugged after a big swallow, tone holding a surprising amount of optimism.  _I guess they're all masochists,_ she giggled to herself.

"Well, thank you all the same," Bulla smiled, giving him a quick peck on the cheek and laughing along with the others when a pink tint spread across his face.

"Worth it," he winked to the soldier opposite him.

Bulla continued bantering with the rest of the crowd, occasionally finding herself locking eyes with their Kaiser. She could see his tail jerking around behind him from time to time, which she'd come to learn was a reliable hint at underlying agitation, even when the rest of his demeanour was impassive.

Eventually, the Saiyans began trickling off to their respective suites until only a few remained. "I need the little girl's room," Bulla whispered while pushing herself up drowsily.

Splashing water on her face to keep herself awake, the heiress took a moment to look at her reflection. She genuinely almost didn't recognise herself - her hair was longer than it had ever been, for one, but the Saiyan armour changed her appearance entirely. Gone were the days of mini-dresses, heels, and her limitless supply of accessories.

The bathroom door flew open while she inspected her pores, causing her to straighten as she raised an aquamarine brow. "What are  _you_  doing in here?" she snorted.

"Looking for you," Raditz answered, immediately stalking toward her, tail now thrashing. Bulla spun around, gripping the basin with both hands while she leaned back into it. He wasted no time eliminating the space between them, squeezing her sides and towering over to her marry their mouths.

"Ah ah ah." She dodged his kiss and wagged her finger before gently nudging his arms away. "Not so fast."

He ignored her, simply swooping in for another. Bulla retaliated by pressing her outstretched hand to his face and pushing him away with a snide snigger. "I've decided to implement a rule," she informed him cheerily.

"A rule?" he repeated, already sounding exasperated.

"Yes." She rested her fingers on her hips while she beamed up at him. "A rule that says-" Bulla had to interrupt herself to swat away the hand that was currently gliding up her bodysuit and slipping under the armour piece. " **A rule that says**  you're not allowed to touch me-"

" **What?"**  he belted as he stepped away from her, entirely unamused

"You didn't let me finish!" she scolded, grazing her fingers over his massive abraded palm. "You're not allowed to touch me if you continue to use these hands for killing."

Bold brows drew together while he stared at her. She could almost hear his brain saying,  _What?_

"You are such a fucking tease," he finally growled, glancing away in frustration.

"I'm being serious," she continued, flattening her hair. "I can't change your past, and I can't enforce what you do once we part ways. But as long as we're doing this." Bulla gestured between their two bodies. "You're not ending a single person's life, do you understand?"

He responded by storming out of the bathroom.

 _That's too bad,_ she lamented, watching after him as the door slowly swung back to its jamb.  _But I guess it's for the best. At least my conscience can remain somewhat clear._

When she returned to the main room it seemed most had retreated to their suites. It was almost certainly heading toward sunrise, but Bulla's little nap earlier gave her some extra stamina to see the night through. She sat down at the bar and ordered another drink, instructing its tender to simply charge it to Turles' tab.  _He probably won't mind,_ she giggled to herself.

It didn't take long to gain company as two lower-ranking soldiers approached her, taking a stool either side. She glanced at one - it was Rhubo. Drago was the other.

"Good evening gentlemen," she greeted playfully, leaning her cheek into her hand while her elbow dug into the bar bench. "Nice to see that some of us are young enough to pull all-nighters, huh?"

"Perhaps," Drago smirked from the other side of her, resting his hand on the low back of her chair. "But I doubt the rest of us would look as good as you would come morning."

Her cheeks flushed at the bare-faced compliment.  _I didn't realise Saiyans had game. Maybe I picked the wrong soldier from the get-go._

When her drink came, she wrapped her dainty fingers around the handle and raised it to Turles. He was in the corner, arms draped over two sets of feminine shoulders while one of the women turned away in annoyance. The other was watching him in endless amusement. He nodded to the heiress, eyes falling to the two soldiers flanking her sides.

"Here's a question for you," Drago spoke up, causing her to twist back around and face him. "What's the deal with you and the men on top?" He eyed her bodysuit unashamedly. "No one can seem to figure out whose bed you're warming." Sliding his hand further along her stool, he edged closer. "Or maybe the answer is both."

"What?" Bulla coughed into her glass at the forthright question before placing it on the bench and wiping her mouth. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she laughed, admittedly unconvincingly.

"I've been under General Turles' command since his squad leader days back in Bardock's time," he countered, watching her sceptically before transferring his gaze to the aforementioned general. "I don't believe that for a second."

"What about the Kaiser?" Rhubo interjected, swirling his drink.

"There's nothing going on between us," she answered with remarkable conviction. Probably, because it was true, as of thirty minutes ago.

The two men exchanged a glance. "Is that so?" Rhubo pondered out loud. "In that case-"

"Can I ask you guys something too?" she interrupted, lightly tracing her fingertip around the edge of her glass. "Where did you all come from?"

"Huh? From Crest," Rhubo answered, though not with any certainty.

"No, I mean." Bulla chewed the inside of her lip in thought. "Why are you guys alive again?" She gazed up at him. "Who brought you all back? And how?"

"If no one's told you," Drago replied, taking a swig from his mug. "Then maybe we're not at liberty to say either."

"Maybe," she offered a demure smile, vaguely sensing a very gradually approaching Turles. "I think it's time to turn in," Bulla exhaled, feeling another wave of cognitive haze washing over her _. The only problem is, I don't know which room is mine, since I was asleep when I got there and it was dark when I left._

"How about some company?" Rhubo put forward casually.

Her smile turned bashful at the shameless come-on.

Both men suddenly stiffened, heads angled downward as their general gripped each of their napes. "Cold showers, both of you," he commanded, prompting each of them to step off their stools and wander off without another word.

Bulla let out a soft chuckle as she twisted in her seat to look at him. "What was  _that_?" Her head was spinning, and she couldn't be sure her feet would make it to the floor safely in her current state.

"Go to bed," he told her, voice gravelly.

"Can you give me a hand?" she requested sheepishly, hooking both arms around his shoulders from her seat while her feet dropped to the ground. As she'd suspected, Bulla lost her balance and instinctively tightened her hold to save herself from falling. He grabbed her waist, reflexes still sharp, despite the dulling of his motor function.

Bulla laughed into his shoulder strap while he held his arm around her to keep her steady. "Doesn't this remind you of something?" she snickered, throwing her head back to look up at him while he surveyed the room.

"Go to your suite," he repeated.

"Can you come with me?"

" _What_?" he stammered.

"C'mooon, Turles," she whined, leaning back and pulling him the direction of the doorway. "Take me to bed like you did earlier." Bulla flopped her forehead into his collarbone, not realising the show she was putting on for the last few conscious soldiers. "I don't know where my room is," she mumbled into his neck, nestling deeper into the dip.

"Gods, you're killing me here," he sighed before dragging her towards the passage that led to the private rooms.

The lights were still off once they entered the hallway, though there was enough light spilling out from under the individual suite doors to provide some level of illumination for their trek.

"Can you carry me again?" she pouted while he held both hands to her hips and drove her forward. "I don't feel like walking."

"No."

"Why not?" she sulked, shuffling along.

"Stop talking."

"Why?" She let out a muffled moan when she felt his palm cover her mouth, aquamarine brows coming together in disapproval.  _He's so moody,_ she rolled her eyes.

"Here." He yanked her back when she waltzed right past her own suite.

"Aw, look at that," she cooed, pivoting on the ball of her foot with a sweet smile. "You walked me right to my door. You  _are_  a gentleman. Just like Goten. Maybe you two aren't so different."

"What are you talking about now?" he frowned.

"God, I miss him," she mumbled, smushing her face against her door while she glanced over to him somberly. Turles was continuing to watch her curiously while she rambled on.

"And you look so much like him." She pushed herself up and stood on her tippy toes in front of him, almost losing her balance again before he returned his palms to her sides. "It's torture." Bulla brought both hands to his forehead and glided upward. "Especially if I do this-" she gasped when she flattened the unruly spikes. Beer goggles were in full force as she stared back at Goten's handsome face. She didn't even need the alcohol to deceive her eyes, but it was sure going a long way to fooling her mind. " _Goten,"_ she uttered.

Her heart was aflutter as her memories barrelled back to the scene outside the hotel room door on Advent, a moment remarkably like this one. How affectionately he'd looked at her when she felt like nothing more than a foolish, exhausted mess.

Unthinkingly, Bulla leaned forward until her mouth was hovering over the general's, staring up at the face her mind was constantly tricking her into seeing.

The smell of liquor hit her nostrils as he exhaled through parted lips.

 _What are you doing, Bulla,_ her subconscious warned.  _You've been down this road before. It's not him, no matter how much you wish it was._

In the back of her mind, she noted that Turles' hands were still lightly resting on her waist as she edged perilously near. His lips close enough drink.  _I wonder if he tastes like Goten as much as he looks like him..._

 _What I wouldn't give..._ she groaned, closing her eyes. " _Kiss me."_ His grip fleetingly tightened and she heard a low rumble from his throat.

"You. Are dangerous," he rasped. Every word he spoke caused his lips to brush past her own, sending a wave of miniature tremors all through her.

 _Do it,_ she willed silently.  _Let me relive that night._

With bated breath, she waited for reprieve, fireworks igniting in her belly when he pressed against her stomach, nose grazing over cheek as he brought his mouth to her neck.

He hesitated for a moment before she heard him exhale and drop his hands. After taking a step back, he swivelled on his boot and swiftly marched off to his own suite.

Bulla leaned back into her door with a sigh,  _Stupid, stupid girl,_  before turning the handle and crashing right to the floor.  _Ow._

After peeling off her armour and unzipping her skin suit, Bulla dragged herself into bed, moaning at the satisfaction of being back under the covers.

The heiress dozed off immediately, but soon stirred when she heard her door creak, followed by a sudden familiar presence.

She ignored him, telling herself he would simply leave if she paid him no mind.

When she felt her mattress dip, she groaned into her pillow. "Go away, jerk."

He responded by bringing his mouth to her shoulder and dragging it over the freshly exposed skin, causing her breath to catch while she squirmed beneath him. "What I said earlier still stands," she muttered, though she could feel her determination slipping.

"I know," Raditz grumbled into her collarbone, slowly edging her sheets towards the foot of the bed.

She pressed her finger to his lips when he tried to kiss her on the mouth. "So you promise to be a good boy from now on?" Bulla teased, raking her fingers over his chest and down his abdomen, suppressing a shiver once her hand grazed against something stiff under a wonderfully thin layer of spandex.

"You're some kind of witch, aren't you?" he voiced huskily.

It wasn't a hard yes, but she suspected it was the best she was going to get. Bulla lightly traced her fingertips over his cheekbone and dotted his jawline, caressing his bottom lip with her thumb before planting a soft kiss.

" _What are you doing to me?_ "

She couldn't even be sure who said it, but it was the last thing she remembered hearing before she finally gave in and everything melted into one big haze.

* * *

_Raditz tossed the lifeless body to the grass at Vegeta's feet before wordlessly proceeding towards the campfire and helping himself to what was left of their dinner._

" _Vile creature," Vegeta spat, staring down his nose at the slight corpse._

_Nappa rose from his seat, apparently curious about the once-barmaid. "I dunno, Vegeta." He bent down to inspect her face within his oversized hand. "She's a looker. I can see what he saw in her. Maybe you should have made an exception this time."_

" _Please," Vegeta scoffed, wearing a face of complete disgust. "Any woman who's willingly bedded by that embarrassment." He nodded to Raditz. "Isn't worthy of the air she breathes. And besides," the prince added, turning away and joining the silent third member near the campsite. "We will not sire half-breeds. End of discussion."_

_Nappa sat on the dried log near his wild-haired squad mate, eyeing him curiously. "Was it quick?"_

_Raditz said nothing, instead keeping his attention on the crackling flames._

" _You must really have liked this one." Nappa shrugged, taking another rip of flesh from his bone._

* * *

Light streaked into her curtainless room, forcing her to wake up hours earlier than she would have liked.  _Holy mother of all hangovers!_  She pressed her palm to her face.  _Trust me to go back for more after I already went ham the first half of the night,_ she scolded herself.  _Trunks would not be impressed._

She took a moment to think about her brother, and how much he was probably worrying about her right now.  _Soon, Trunks. I'll be back, I promise._  The heiress winced when she acknowledged how disappointed he'd be in her if he ever learned how she'd been spending her time with the ambivalent Saiyans. Excluding the shameful deeds she partook in with their leader as of late, she couldn't deny how much she genuinely enjoyed their company and relentlessly eager attitudes. It was far too easy to forget how ruthless they could be when she spent so much time revelling in the Saiyan brotherhood.

Her door crashed open suddenly, causing her to shriek in surprise as she grabbed her discarded bodysuit and held it to her chest.

"Oops," one of the soldiers Bulla recognised as being part of Caya's squad muttered. "Wrong room." As she pulled the door closed, however, she paused. Bulla could hear her sniffing.

_Oh my God, please no._

"Someone got lucky last night," the woman grinned, reopening the door to regard the heiress. "Showers are that way." She pointed up the hallway and gave her a wink before clicking it closed.

"Thanks," Bulla mumbled, face rapidly reddening.  _Well, better go wash the sin off me._ She pushed herself up groggily and poked her head out to check the passage,  _All clear,_ before dashing down in her towel.

Thankfully, it seemed some planets were more like earth in their designation of gender-specific washrooms, so she didn't need to worry about being barged in on by some random naked male soldier.

After rinsing herself off as best as she could without soap and cleaning her teeth with her fingers, Bulla stepped out of the dingy communal shower and towelled herself down.

Returning to her room, she slipped back into her uniform and made up her bed, humming a tune while she kneeled into the hard floor.

Bulla sensed the three powerful ki's outside her window, along with their voices and things sounded heated. She tiptoed to the glass panel and peeked through, indeed spying the high-ranking warriors on the patchy lawn outside the tavern. There was someone else there too - a young man she didn't recognise, but she heard mention of the name Serce.

_Uh-oh. This is about that botched deal from last night._

Bulla exited her room and stepped through the front doors, instinctively keeping her ki low while she snuck over to the side of the building and pressed her back to the wall, discreetly popping her head around the corner.

"I told him we're done," Raditz spoke harshly. "Take your shit and leave."

"He understands." On closer inspection it appeared to be a feeble looking teenager who was pleading with the Kaiser. "But my uncle wanted to express his gratitude for the mercy you showed last night."

Bulla frowned at the sight. That coward sending his scrawny nephew to deal with the murderous Saiyans in his place. And not even a single meathead guard at his side as reinforcement.  _Kami, that guy's a loser._

"He apologises for offending you, and would prefer to maintain a healthy business relationship with the Saiyan empire," the boy added with a gulp. "You've been a valued partner over the years."

She heard him yelp when Nappa grabbed him by the back of his collar. "Hey Turles," the general began throatily. "How about a game? Let's see which of us can throw the farthest."

Bulla gasped, blood draining from her face as she watched the terror rise on the boys expression. She was about to step out and blow her own cover when she heard Raditz' voice cut through.

"Put him down," he exhaled, sounding like an exhausted teacher wrangling in their rambunctious students. "Our beef is with his pathetic excuse of an uncle. Maiming that runt will accomplish nothing."

Her breath caught.  _Did I hear that right?_

"Raditz, c'mon" Nappa argued. "It'll send a message."

"He's right," Turles spoke up.

 _Who's right?_ Bulla's eyes darted between the three men. She almost hit her head on the tavern's overhang when she felt of someone's hand on her shoulder.

"Rhubo!" she greeted a bit too excitedly. "Hi!"

"Good morning," he smiled. "Drago was right, you really do look better than the rest of us after a late night."

"Uh, thanks." She forced a laugh, lids squeezing shut while she rested her hand on the back of her head, feeling remarkably Goku-like.

"What are your doing out here?" he asked, glancing at the surroundings. "We've still got a few hours until checkout." He threw his thumb out over his shoulder. "While the big guys are busy, how about we-"

Bulla snapped her head when she felt a ki spike.  _Oh no._  When she saw the young boy sprinting down the footpath, however, her fears were put to rest.  _Thank Kami,_ she exhaled. Raditz strode past the duo a few moments later, sparing neither even a fleeting look. Nappa was close behind while Turles trailed, carrying a large cardboard box in his arms. He said nothing, but glanced at Rhubo out of the corner of his eye, causing the younger man to jump back with a gulp.

Bulla watched after the three Saiyans, almost in a daze. She had no idea whether her words to the Kaiser had any impact on that meeting, or if it was simply how he conducted himself anyway, but she couldn't suppress a smile at the weightlessness she was currently feeling.

_There has to be a chance for these guys._

* * *

"Where's Nappa?" Bulla swung her head around while a stream of soldiers ambled up the ramp. He was around for the previous evening's festivities and the impromptu morning transaction, but she hadn't seen him since. Saiyans gradually trickled in over the course of the afternoon though there was still no sign of the giant general.

"He's staying behind," Turles' answered plainly, arms folded while he watched the underlings pile in.

"What?" she frowned up at him. "Why?"

"Because he has business to attend to." A few Saiyans saluted him as they entered, earning themselves a cool nod from the high-ranking warrior.

"I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye," she pouted.

Turles gave her a sceptical look. "So what?"

Bulla could only sigh. "Never mind," she breathed. "You wouldn't get it." She decided to change the subject. "Last night," Bulla began. Immediately Turles spared a slight turn of his head, and she could see him watching her in his peripheral vision. "You carried me to bed." She looked up at him. "That's not like you."

"I wouldn't have done it of my own accord," he grunted, returning his attention to the sea of incoming Saiyans.

"So why'd you do it?" she beamed, twisting side to side while she clasped her hands behind her back, always only too happy to annoy him with her sweet-girl act.

"Because Raditz wanted me to," he grumbled, clearly unhappy about the request.

"Why did he ask  _you_?" she queried, large blue eyes watching him with keen interest.

He exhaled through his nose. "Sometimes I think he truly despises me, and enjoys watching me suffer." This speculation got a giggle out of her as he loosened his arms. "But it's probably because I'm the one he trusts most."

"Really? In what way?" Bulla asked innocently, squeezing a lid to block out the sun's afternoon glare.

He offered her a dull look, but didn't bother continuing his train of thought.

"You two seem kind of close," she voiced, intrigued by the building evidence for her background theories. "Closer than he is with Nappa, even though they worked together before you all died in your various silly ways."

Turles sneered. "That sounds like a disturbingly earthling concept."

She couldn't help but poke him teasingly. "You don't need to be embarrassed about it," she chuckled. "My brother are Goten are Saiyans too, and they're closer than actual brothers. Or at least, they used to be." Bulla thought back fondly to the two boys in her early years. Most of her memories involved seeing a very irate Vegeta with steam coming out of his ears while the teenagers hid behind her mother for safety. A few short years later, Trunks was out of the house and Goten stopped coming around, except for the occasional reunion. She'd secretly always envied Marron for how readily the boys accepted her into their circle. Bulla and Pan were forced to find company in each other.

"They did everything together," she added with a soft smile. "Even learning to sync up enough that they could fuse into one person."

Turles made a face of complete disgust, only causing her to laugh harder, though she felt her shoulders beginning to slump.  _I can't wait to see them again._

Raditz soon came into view and marched up the ramp. Unthinkingly, she pivoted on her heel and joined him when he strode past her.

Even just walking next to the long-haired Saiyan was electrifying, Bulla found. Feeling the accidental graze of his arm brushing past her shoulder gave her goosebumps. She hoped it wasn't too obvious, lest she lose what little shred of dignity she had left. While Bulla had to make a concerted effort to act as natural as possible, she suspected he had no such trouble. All he had to do was be his regular taciturn self.

Once they were alone in the hallway leading to his suite, Bulla felt something slithering its way between her legs, quickly spotting a furry brown tail wrapping itself around her thigh. A smile broke on her face as she turned her head to glance up at the stoic warrior. He kept his gaze ahead, but she didn't miss the faint curl that was pulling at the end of his lips.

* * *

"What's being dead like?" Bulla asked, pressing her chin to the hand that was resting against his chest. The other was absently twirling his impossibly unruly hair between her fingers.

"Nothing," he answered.

Bulla exhaled through her nose in exasperation.  _Typical. He isn't interested in talking unless it's to say something dirty._

He glanced down at her briefly. "Really, I'm not-" He let out a sigh. "When I was dead there was no consciousness," he elaborated, staring at his ceiling. "All I remember was taking my last pained breath on earth and then waking up again to see that everything around me had changed in a blink." Bulla gazed up at him, admittedly surprised that he was actually making an effort to answer her question. "Before I knew it, I was teleported to Namek and surrounded by thousands of other Saiyans."

She cocked her head at this new piece of information. "Namek?" she repeated. "So you were brought back with the dragon balls?"

"Me and every other Saiyan who met an untimely end over that selected time period, yes," he affirmed, speaking about the topic as if they were discussing something as trivial as the weather forecast.

Pressing into his ribs, Bulla pushed herself up, earning a raised brow as he eyed her. " _That's insane_!" she whispered. "I didn't know the Namekian dragon balls were that powerful. Since when?"

"How would I know?" he countered plainly. "I was merely the subject of one of the wishes, not the taker nor the granter."

"So who made the wishes?" she questioned, large blue eyes fixated on his bottomless black ones. "Some other Saiyan, I take it?"

"I don't think any true Saiyan would squander an opportunity like that on such a senseless wish," he almost laughed at the notion. "Your own father is the proudest Saiyan I've ever met, and I guarantee the thought hasn't crossed his mind once in all these years."

"Well, sure," she shrugged, dragging her fingertip over a long scar that stretched from deep under his arm all the way to his hip, as though someone had attempted to slice him open, side-on. "But that's because he's a different person now. He's selfless and heroic," she asserted proudly. "He wants to keep people safe, and wishing back his old warrior race isn't exactly conducive to making the universe a better place."

Raditz muttered something guttural under his breath as he shook his head. "Prince Vegeta a hero..." she manage to pick up. "Never in my lives could I ever have imagined something so absurd."

"Not just any old hero," Bulla added, looking to the bathroom as she considered getting freshened up for the new day. "He's saved the entire universe more than once. Daddy is a good man in every sense of the word."

"It sounds like he's lost his balls," Raditz spat, quickly grasping her wrist when she threatened to leave. Bulla turned to face him, a playful smile growing before she slid her hand over his broad chest and swung her leg past his hip.

"I think you underestimate the charm of a Briefs," she teased, bringing her face down to nuzzle at his neck, soft blue locks licking at his cheeks as he sighed into her ear.

She squealed when she felt large hands squeezing at her waist followed by a forceful tumble as he rolled her on to her back. Bulla beamed up at the reticent Saiyan, eyes sparkling at the satisfaction of being granted access to a side of him so rarely seen. He stared down at her, eyes raking over her features, a minute warmth peeking through that dared her to think,  _Maybe he's not so different from the other Sons?_ Her smile faltered when the intrusive image of Goku's youngest flashed through her mind.

Dark brows drew together ever so slightly as he hesitated.

Shaking the thought away, Bulla snaked her fingers through his wild mane and pulled his face down to meet their lips. She shivered at the rumble of his low growl in her mouth, one of many reminders over the past few weeks that the man on top of her was far from human.

As he reached a hand down to readjust himself, a knock sounded from his door. "What?" he barked, turning his head to glare at the ill-timed interruption.

"It's Turles," Bulla told him quietly.

"Raditz," the aforementioned general's voice came through. "There's a call for you."

"Tell them they'll have to wait," he returned gruffly, causing the heiress to giggle.  _At least he's got his priorities straight._

"It's from the second fleet," Turles added, a subtle warning in his voice that suggested to the heiress this may be important.

Pressing into his fists, Raditz glanced at the Saiyan princess.

"What?" she smiled before sneaking another peck.

He pushed himself up and headed for his closet. With the efficiency of a true soldier, he was dressed and at his door within the minute.

She sat up, holding the sheets to herself as she watched him open it. Turles said something under his breath to the young Kaiser and, for a fleeting moment, they made eye contact. Blush immediately hit her cheeks at the embarrassment of him seeing her in his leader's bed, clearly less than dressed.

"Ugh," she moaned, falling to her back.  _And here I thought I could get away without anyone realising._

Despite herself, she found she was becoming increasingly fond of Raditz' company. Each week that passed he revealed more of himself to her, entertaining her questions and even spared the occasional snort at her silly earth stories. Over the past three weeks she'd strategically kept the topics light and easy, but she could see him opening up with enough time. And Briefs magic.

 _These guys really aren't so bad,_  she sighed remorsefully, shifting her head and looking at his pillow.  _They've just been given the short end of the stick one too many times. Look at my dad - if he could turn himself around, then anyone can._

For the second time this morning, Goten's face appeared out of nowhere.  _Stop!_  she scolded herself, covering her eyes with her hands.  _I don't want to think about him!_  But alas, she replayed the tender scene in their hotel room the morning before she was hauled off. The way he'd looked at her turned her entire body to jelly and still sent shivers down her spine just thinking about it. In that fleeting moment she had wanted nothing more than to have him kiss her again; to confirm that it wasn't just a spot of insanity after a night of drinking, dancing and dumb decisions. Even with the clarity of sleep and sobriety, he had still wanted a taste of her. And she had wanted him too.

* * *

"I don't remember much about Plant Vegeta." Fern tilted her head. "I was only seven when Frieza destroyed it, but I like Crest. It's way more lush and green than I ever remember Vegeta being. Plus." The corners of her eyes raised. "I know it makes life easier for papa."

Bulla couldn't help but smile warmly at the teen. She had really come to adore talking with her, and hearing about Saiyan life from someone who had their ear to the ground. It had been almost five months since she left earth, and almost equally as long since she'd spoken to any of her girlfriends. Despite the mild age difference, the heiress found it remarkably easy to speak with the, she eventually discovered, seventeen year old.

The two girls were huddled up on a sofa in one of the many nooks aboard the ship, large windows circling the room, serving as a reminder to Bulla of the sheer nothingness in every direction.

"What about earth?" the young Saiyan enquired. "Is it pretty? Are your fields productive?"

Bulla burst out laughing. Never in her life had she ever pondered such a thing. A jolt at the back of her neck caught her attention and she snapped her head to the right just in time to see spiky hair and a navy cape strolling past.

"Turles, hey!" she called out. He paused and twisted his neck, signalling he was listening, but didn't bother turning all the way around. "Come here." Bulla waved him over.

With a sigh he did as she said. At this point Bulla was reasonably certain his demeanour was entirely for show. At the very least, it was an act when he dealt with  _her_. No matter how impatient he appeared, she always managed to get him to do her bidding.

"What do you want?" he spoke brusquely, arms folded.

"I'm just checking that you've met my friend Fern." She directed her hands to her companion, eliciting a gasp from said teenager.

Turles flicked his gaze to her for all of one second before returning it to the heiress. "I've been to the cafeteria before, yes," he responded dully.

"Oh, so you've noticed her then?" Bulla cocked a single aquamarine brow, giving him a knowing look. Fern slapped her leg. "Not surprising. She's cute as a button, isn't she?"

He dropped his arms and spun on his boot, already muttering something about having his time wasted when Bulla hopped up and hooked her fingers around his bicep. "Actually there was something else I wanted to ask you." She waved to the teen before joining Turles wherever he was headed. "I've been trying to ask this since I got on this ship, but no one seems capable of giving me a straight answer."

He narrowed his eyes as he looked at her, already getting suspicious.

"Who revived you guys?"

She saw a mischievous smirk broaden before he answered. "What, our boy Raditz hasn't told you during one of your pillow talk sessions?"

Bulla gasped, cheeks immediately turning fire engine red. "Shut up!"

He erupted into raucous laughter, quickly ducking his head when Bulla threatened to smack it.

She cringed as she wiped her palms down her face.

"Did you think I didn't know?" he eventually added, amusement still present. "He's had his eye on you the from the moment your fist met his nose."

"He has?"  _Damn,_ she nodded smugly, admittedly impressed with herself.  _I've still got it._  "Anyway, back to the question."

"Can you take your hands off me?" He wagged his right arm, attempting to relieve himself of the fingers still stubbornly wrapped around the firm muscle.

"Of course I can," she smiled sweetly. "But I don't want to. Have I ever told you how cute you are when you're angry?" She poked him in the cheek teasingly, loving watching him struggle to maintain his aloof persona.

This time he was the one to frown, only causing her to cackle childishly. Apparently the surly Saiyan resigned himself to being her chaperone, since he stopped fighting her relentless displays of affection.

"You've heard of Frieza, by the sounds of it," he eventually began his response to her initial question.

"No shit,  _Frieza_  revived you?" she blurted, coming to a stop while she glared, slack-jawed, at the older fighter. "But he hates us!"

He groaned to himself before continuing. "No, Frieza didn't revive us." He nodded to a group of passing soldiers.

 _Are they new?_ Bulla thought fleetingly.  _I feel like I don't recognize them. Weird._

"But megalomaniacs are a dime a dozen out here," he told her. "When his reign of terror ended, others were only too happy to take his place."

"Wait." She pulled back on his arm when he tried to get moving again. "The person who revived you..." Aquamarine brows drew together. "They brought you guys back so that you could do their dirty work for them?"

A single dark eyebrow raised. "You catch on fast, don't you?" he smirked. "The Saiyans were Frieza's best dogs and everyone knew it." The humour was beginning to slip from his features. "We weren't always the most obedient, but we were good at what we did and always got the job done. Anyone with half a brain knows that if you want to build an empire from the ground up, you'll require a fearless and devastating army."

She mulled over his words, biting the inside of her cheek. "But you guys didn't want to do that again," Bulla voiced outloud, drawing prior comments from other members of the fleet and stitching them together to complete the tale in her head. "So you killed him?" The heiress looked up at him questioningly.

"Raditz killed him," Turles corrected, causing her to seize.

" _What?"_ Her blood instantly ran cold. "What happened?" she asked apprehensively, unsure if she really wanted to hear the gory details. She knew her father had plenty of blood on his hands, but no one ever really brought it up. Even Trunks avoided answering her questions back when she was full of curiosity about their dad and his unusual heritage.

"He rammed his fist through Sibe's ribcage, pulled out his heart and burst it in his hands, right in front of him," Turles stated easily. "Then Raditz ripped off his head."

 _Oh Kami,_ Bulla's knees buckled as she felt her breakfast rising.  _Why did I even ask?_ "What I meant was." She took a slow breath. "What led to Raditz being able to kill him. I'm guessing this Sibe character was no small fish."

"He wasn't," he agreed, folding his arms while his gaze wandered. It wasn't often that she caught the temperamental Saiyan lost in thought. "We spent innumerable hours using their technology to aid our pursuits under the guise of strengthening ourselves for his benefit. We worked ourselves to the bone, revived in their tanks each night and repeated the process day in day out for years." Bulla's feet were positively cemented to the floor while he relayed the story, the corners of her eyes slowly dropping as she imagined what it must have been like for all of them - weathering a second chance at life under a new tyrant so soon after losing their last one to Frieza. "While our new overlord focused on the bigger picture, playing his intergalactic game of chess, we were slowly getting stronger and learning how to keep it hidden lest we suffer the same fate as before."

 _I knew it!_ Bulla had long suspected that at least some of the Saiyans were capable of masking their true power, having found that out the hard way at the hands of Turles and Raditz alike, but now she heard it straight from the horse's mouth.  _How strong are they really?_  She really had been underestimating them from the beginning, and yet Turles had told her himself as soon as she met him that he was stronger than he looked.

"Nappa and Raditz both spoke of encountering warriors from Earth who could reserve their true battle powers, so we knew it was both possible and necessary to learn. If a child could do it, so could we." He pulled her out of the way as another wave of soldiers passed through, throwing astounded glances in her direction while they saluted their general.

 _They were all pushing themselves to liberate their people,_ she mulled sympathetically, pressing her fingers to her mouth in thought.  _While I was on earth, sneaking out with Pan and trying to find as much trouble as I could._

"If everyone wanted him dead," Bulla continued, forming her next question. "Why was Raditz the one to kill him?"

He looked back at her, seemingly surprised. "Because Raditz got there first." Yet another soldier that she didn't recognise walked by before stopping to approach them, but Turles gestured for her to keep moving. "In case you haven't noticed, he's our most powerful warrior and has been for the better part of a decade. Despite the humble beginnings, he surpassed the king in a blink."

Bulla couldn't help the faint smile snuck onto her face that when she noted how much Raditz' story mirrored his brother's.  _There's something in that bloodline,_ she sighed, warmth rising through her at the reminder of her best friend's grandfather.  _Give them a goal and there's nothing those men can't do._

She felt a hand on the small of her back, instantly sprouting butterflies, and turned her head, offering a girlish grin to the unlikely saviour of her father's people.

"I was just on my way to find you," Turles told him. "I take it all's clear with the bridge?"

"Yes, everything's taken care of," Raditz responded, keeping his palm lightly pressed to the heiress while all three pivoted and continued making their way down the ship's passageway. "We can expect..."

Bulla zoned them out. She was in the middle while the two men continued to talk details about military matters she had no interest in. Instead, she found herself digesting Turles' unexpectedly detailed explanation of the Saiyans' fresh start and the man who catalysed it.  _That family,_  she mused again. Her mind flicked back to Goku, endless drive somehow living in complete harmony with the most gentle nature she'd ever come across in a man. She thought of Gohan, young boy with the world on his shoulders while he pushed through boundaries no one had even been aware existed, saving the earth from destruction when no one else could. And then of course, Goten, the youngest Super Saiyan the records had ever seen. Her heart leapt when she pictured his cheerful face in her mind's eye. Making her laugh until her stomach hurt and throat dried up. How could a grown man succeed in looking so boyish, and make her feel like a carefree young girl all over again?

She vaguely felt Raditz tail teasing at her leg as she attempted to chase his mental image away. But this time it wouldn't leave.

Because it wasn't in her mind.

Bulla audibly gasped as her heart beat at her rib cage, palm instantly flying to her mouth.

Before her, dressed in full Saiyan armour, just as she was, was a figure she'd learned to recognise since her earliest memories. Slowly, he lifted his head - no doubt sensing her ki at the same time - as he was led down the hallway by another cape-wearing soldier that she'd never seen before. In the fleeting moment that their eyes locked, time stood still and everything around her melted into the floor.

She couldn't stifle the cry that escaped her lips as she tore away from the two high-ranking soldiers, much to their confusion, and launched herself at the ever-heartening demi-Saiyan who had suddenly appeared in front of her, as if straight out of her own dreams.


	17. Clouds

" _She's serious?" Goten questioned, a single dark eyebrow raised while he watched his oldest friend with folded arms._

" _Completely." Trunks exhaled a thick plume of white smoke before dropping his cigarette to the patio tile and snuffing it beneath his shoe. "After Bulla called her to say she and Pan were on board, she started preparing the Odyssey T-3 pretty much immediately. We leave next week."_

" _Your mom doesn't mess around," Goten acknowledged with a faint smirk. "So if the girls are going, what do you need me for?"_

_Trunks looked at him flatly and Goten had to remind himself not to take it too personally - the guy hadn't exactly been in the best headspace lately._

" _That's precisely why I'm extending the invitation," the older hybrid stated. "Don't get me wrong, I love your niece. But the two of them together will probably drive me nuts within the first week." He brought a fresh smoke to his lips and cupped the end with his hand while he lit it. "Join me so I don't have to suffer alone. Balance out some of that estrogen."_

" _I dunno, man." Goten rubbed the back of his neck, sceptical. "It sounds kinda fun, but I don't know how I'm supposed to convince Clara to agree to it."_

" _Dude," Trunks muttered, expression entirely unsympathetic. "She's a big girl. I'm sure she'll survive without you. She managed to do it for the first twenty-five years somehow, right?"_

" _That's not what I mean and you know it," Goten mumbled._

_Trunks exhaled through his nostrils. "I hold my tongue most of the time," he began. "So try to keep that in mind when I say: your girlfriend is fucking ridiculous." Goten winced. "Her resentment towards my sister is one of the stupidest things I've ever seen. Bulla is friendly with everyone, even her. The fact that Clara can't bring herself to like her is more a reflection on your girlfriend than anything else. She needs to grow the fuck up."_

" _C'mon man…" He couldn't even bring himself to argue with the guy. Despite his harsh words about the love of his life, Trunks was right. Bulla never had anything negative to say about the aspiring actress, despite Clara's chilly attitude towards her most of the time. Of course, she had no idea of Clara's animosity, or where it stemmed from. "I'll run it past her," Goten eventually conceded with a sigh._

" _No," Trunks asserted, spilling ash when he jabbed his finger at the stuntman's breastbone. "If you want to go, tell her you're going. Ask for forgiveness, never permission."_

_And_ that,  _he realised far too late, was the beginning of the end._

* * *

"Hngh," Goten groaned into his pillow, feeling his muscles ache as he slowly attempted to push himself up from whatever hard surface he had found himself on. It certainly wasn't his trusty spacebed. In fact, the whole room felt entirely unfamiliar. He drew in a sharp breath when he sat up straight, immediately clutching his side.

_Huh?_

His t-shirt was gone, and he was covered in medical tape. Meanwhile, the contortions in his face caused a split in his lip to retear.  _Fuck,_  he cursed when the sting coursed through.  _What the hell happened to me?_

He brought his fingers to his mouth,  _Yep, that's blood,_ and dropped his hand with a sigh, lightly shaking his head to rid himself of the grogginess that was still hanging over him like a heavy blanket.  _Where are the others?_  he asked himself, seeking out the respective energy signatures of his shipmates and coming up blank. Rubbing his fingers across his forehead, he urged himself to recall any previous events that could have led him here:

Bulla grabbing his wrist, and his surprise at the sudden contact.

How quickly her face had gone from its usual healthy glow to completely blanched.

He'd followed her panicked gaze and saw three men, dark-haired and imposing, each carrying tails. That's when he noticed their power levels - not as high as the three hybrids, but definitely nothing to sniff at either. There was someone even stronger amongst them, however.

The face of the squad leader suddenly flashed through his mind, catapulting his memories forward. He remembered seeing that devastating punch Trunks took to the gut once they'd released that strange gas, blood instantly spewing from his mouth and falling to the city below while he hunched over his opponent's fist. Just as he was about to intervene, Goten had heard a whimper from his right and instantly snapped his head.  _They've got her!_

Bulla's eyes were closed and her head was hanging drowsily while some brute held her against their armour plating.

"Bulla!" Goten had called out, managing to pull one arm free from a nameless soldier, while three more buzzed around him like flies. They'd succeeded in overwhelming him while his body failed to answer his call. Bulla had opened her eyes then and looked right at him, appearing entirely disoriented.  _Argh, come on!_ He'd pushed as hard as he could, driving every cell to ascend, but it wouldn't take hold. It was like his nervous system was crippled, everything was firing at a sluggish pace.

That's when he saw the man in the white cape, leisurely drifting in front of the heiress. Goten heard another soft cry, followed by long blue hair shimmering from behind the burly man's shoulder as she edged away from the hand grabbing at her face. The two soldiers had been muttering to each other, watching her as they did so, but Goten couldn't hear what they were saying. All this while he was still attempting to neutralise blows from four of the man's soldiers - and failing horribly.

_That filthy fucking-_  Back in the present, Goten clenched his fist as he recalled the memory, feeling the raw skin on his knuckles scream out as they stretched over bruised bone. In his mind's eye, he could still see the man handling her like an animal, wiping his hand over her face, thumbing her cheek and threading his fingers through her hair.

" _Get your hands off her!"_  he'd yelled. Never in his life had he felt such a sickening sense of powerlessness.

_I need to find her._

Goten forced himself off the cot and pulled the door open. Turning his head left, he found nothing but potted plants sitting at the end of a hallway, so he quietly headed right, instinctively pressing his back to the wall when he felt an energy approach.  _Weak,_ he noted. Peeking around the corner, he spotted a young woman, Saiyan too. She was short and lean and didn't seem to have much in the way of muscle mass. Her hair was wild and spiky, ending at her shoulders.

He closed his eyes and took a breath.

"Ah!" she screamed into Goten's hand when he clasped it over her mouth, muffling most her warning call before anyone else heard. He swiftly hauled her into the vacant adjacent room and shut the door, standing in front of it when he released her and blocking her only means of exit.

"Where am I?" he demanded, primed to act if she decided to pounce him.

Her eyes were wide open while she stared back in fear. "Please don't hurt me," she uttered, gripping the medical bed behind her.

Immediately, all anger and conviction dissolved. "I won't, I swear." He showed his palms. "I'm sorry for scaring you, I just." He wiped his hand over his face. "I have no idea what's going on right now, or where I am."

"You're on the Saiyan fleet," she exhaled, slowly straightening but still watching him with marked apprehension. "In the infirmary, to be exact."

"Fleet?" he repeated, a feeling of dread washing over him. "So I'm not on Advent anymore?"

"No." She shook her head. "You were found by Captain Auber and his squad two days ago. I've been tasked with taking care of your injuries while you recovered."

"What did they do to me?" He tensed his jaw at the reminder that he was in less than stellar shape thanks to those overly aggressive apes.

"Nothing serious." She tentatively approached him, delicate fingers reaching for the bandage at his side. "Only enough to stop your resistance. There was some internal bleeding." Goten held his breath when she touched the white tape to assess its state. "And plenty of bruising, but you're healing quickly. Why aren't you in the records?" she asked, gazing up at him while her fingers glided to the strappings over his shoulder. "And what happened to your tail?"

He refrained from answering, deciding that Trunks' general approach of operating as anonymously as possible may be the smartest option for now. "Where are the other two I was with?"

"What other two?" she uttered absently, slowly working her way across his torso, checking each bandage. "You were the only one brought in as far as I know."

Goten exhaled through his nostrils, clenching his fist once more.  _Dammit. Now what?_ "I need to get off this thing and find my friends."

"That won't be possible, I'm afraid," she responded, taking a step back once she finished her quiet evaluation of him. "We're not scheduled to stop for a good while. Can we go outside?" She nodded to the door. "I need to tell my supervisor that you're awake and I'll probably hear about it if I leave you unattended."

He stepped out of the way, realising there was nothing more he could do. Here he was, back in the expanse of space, with an astoundingly gentle Saiyan woman who would probably end up losing in a fight against his ageing mother. Goten had no idea what to make of his current situation, or the people who apprehended him. Despite their assault, he was well aware that they could easily have done more damage. Or outright killed him if they felt like it. Why didn't they? And the woman too, she was surprisingly attentive to his injuries.

"What's your name?" he asked, putting out his arm as she walked through the doorway.

"Nel," she answered, watching him warily. "You?"

He hesitated, but eventually decided it probably didn't give them enough to go on. "Goten."

Following after her when she exited, Nel led him out of the medical wing and down a long passageway. He almost couldn't believe his eyes when he spotted yet more Saiyans, strolling along and talking easily amongst themselves. Their demeanours seemed a far cry from what he'd encountered on Advent, though most were still eyeing him curiously. After a minute or two, they reached a door, which Nel tapped at.

"Yes?" an impatient voice came through from the other side.

"He's awake," she responded, casting Goten a glance out of the corner of her eye.

The door promptly swung open, revealing an exhausted-looking older woman, perhaps in her fifties. She was immediately startled on seeing the dark-haired hybrid and quickly reared.

"He's okay, Netta," Nel informed. "Not dangerous... I think. Just confused."

"They did quite a number on you, didn't they." The woman regarded him with a look of mild amusement. "I'm impressed you kept up as well as you did. From what I hear, Auber's still not done riding his men for their incompetence."

_Auber,_  he noted.  _That's the second time I'm hearing that name. He must be the one with the white cape. The one who had Bulla._ He could feel himself becoming increasingly uneasy at the reminder. "Do you know where I can find the girl I was travelling with?" he enquired, keeping his voice steady. "Is she okay?"

"What's he talking about?" Netta asked the younger woman dully, prompting her to shrug her shoulders.

Nel turned to the demi-Saiyan. "Sorry, Goten. I don't think she's here. Maybe they left her on Advent."

He let out a breath.  _I think I actually prefer that idea,_  he realised.  _If they left me alive, hopefully Bulla and Trunks are too._

Netta rested her palm on Goten's shoulder and began prodding at the bandaged areas. Pressing her fingers to his side, she applied sharp, sudden pressure, causing him to cough out a grunt before falling to his knees. She murmured to herself before turning her head to her underling. "He shouldn't be walking around yet. Take him back to the infirmary and keep him on bed rest for another day or two."

"But mothe-"

"Bring his meals to his room," Netta continued through the interruption. "After that, he's in the dormitories with the others."

"Whose orders?" Nel questioned, an air of belligerence that Goten hadn't expected as he pushed himself back up.

She simply earned herself a knowing look.

"Okay, fine," Nel sighed, pivoting on her boot. "Come on Goten, back to the sick bay for you."

Without a word, he followed behind her, quietly taking in his surroundings. It seemed to just be an endless network of passageways and doors. He could barely tell one wing from the next. If he ever tried to run for it, he'd be screwed. Not to mention, there wouldn't be anywhere to go anyway.

Goten passed a couple of whispering soldiers, both sets of dark eyes positively glued to him. "Am I a prisoner here?" he spoke up, breaking the silence. Turning another corner, he spotted a man he almost certainly recognised from Advent. Immediately, his ki spiked, before forcing himself to calm down.  _Not yet, take it easy,_  he soothed.  _They don't seem to be bent on hurting you right now, so wait until you're recovered to act on anything._

"Prisoner?" Nel repeated, tilting her head slightly in consideration of the question. "No, I don't think so. We're not really the 'prisoner taking types', as I'm sure you know."

"I don't actually," he muttered.

She rolled her head back while continuing forward, glancing at him sceptically. "Wait, are you really not one of ours?" she frowned. "I can't see how that's possible. You look and smell entirely Saiyan. The only thing that gives me doubt is the lack of tail, but that's hardly inexplicable."

Again, he kept his mouth.

"Look," she smiled surprisingly sympathetically. "I'm sure there's some explanation for all of this. Just give it a few days, until you're fully recovered perhaps, and then maybe you'll start getting some answers. Those in the highest ranks have had their plates full since we left Advent, but they're the ones who will probably know what's going on."

"What am I supposed to do until then?" he responded, dreading the thought of having to stay cooped up in the medical wing indefinitely while he waited for word from the higher-ups.

"We can keep each other company," she offered optimistically. "I usually have my meals in the infirmary anyway. Speaking of which, are you hungry?"

_YES._ "A little."

"Okay, I'll see if there are any leftovers." She gently gripped his arm and pointed down the hallway. "Head through that passage and turn left once you get to the end. You'll see the sign for the med bay."

"Alright," he said, before following her directions while she went the opposite way.

Once he reached the infirmary, his eyes glossed over the main room's contents more carefully: Nothing but what he presumed to be medical supplies and surgical tools. He did come across a photo ID on one of the desks though.

_Nel. Junior Doctor,_ he noted, seeing her smiling face.  _She's pretty cute._

When he sat down in her chair, he felt a blinding pain rip through his side. With a groan, his hand instinctively shot to clutch at it while he doubled over. Thoughts drifted back to Advent.  _Auber,_ he reminded himself, recalling the moment the squad captain first approached the heiress, almost burying himself in her neck while she froze in horror.

He couldn't tell what the guy's intentions were, and he knew Trunks would be pissed if he acted too hastily. But when Auber extended his hand, trying to get his filthy paws on her, instincts kicked in.

Goten threw his head back with a sigh.  _It's my fault._ He ran his fingers through his lengthening mane.  _He realised how strong I was when I grabbed his arm. Maybe they would have let us go if I'd listened to Trunks and been more controlled._

"This is all they had." Nel returned carrying a few plates, pushing the door open with her back and slipping in before nudging it closed again with her foot.

"Thanks." He got up to relieve her of her stack.

She swept her arm across her desk, clearing a space for him. "Let me know if you need anything else."

He took a bite from the first dish. "I don't get it," he mumbled, mouth full.

"Get what?" She tilted her head, taking a seat nearby.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" he asked plainly. "Your men were the ones to do this to me in the first place. It doesn't make sense."

"Oh." A faint red hit her cheeks. "Well like I said earlier, their intention wasn't to hurt you, necessarily. But you took a bit of unexpected force to neutralise. Plus." She glanced up sheepishly. "I wouldn't put it past some of them to have gotten in a few dirty hits while you were unconscious. They can be a bit..." she hesitated while she chose her words. He simply watched her patiently. "Easily worked up sometimes," Nel eventually settled on.

"What about you?" Goten enquired once more. "Are you just trying to lull me or something."

"Oh, no!" she laughed, redness becoming bolder. "But it's not really my M.O to hurt unnecessarily. I prefer to heal. And you needed healing."

"I sort of kidnapped you earlier…" he countered sceptically.

"I know," she nodded. "But I saw how quickly your demeanour changed when I asked you not to hurt me. You're not violent like some of the others, I can tell. Your eyes are kind."

All he could do was shrug while he continued eating his meal.  _Man, this chick trusts easily._

"The girl," she said, causing him to pause. "I'm pretty sure she's not aboard the ship, but I can ask around for you."

"Thanks," he muttered.

"Is she a relative of yours? What does she look like?"

"No, we're not related," he answered, stabbing at his food absently. "And she's pretty hard to miss. Long blue hair, same shade eyes."

"Blue?" Nel reared. "That doesn't sound Saiyan at all. I'm almost certain they would have left her behind in the case. We don't have much to spare, and we only really look out for our own."

"Right." He dropped his spoon, suddenly not feeling all that hungry anymore.

* * *

" _Is this one of your jokes?" the redhead asked quietly, fingers beginning to fidget. "You know I don't always get your sense of humour Goten…"_

" _Clara, I'm sorry," Goten exhaled, glancing to the floor while he kept his clenched fist out of the camera's view. The headphones were now uncomfortable on his head, even though he'd only put them on a few minutes ago and his layers were making him stuffy, despite the freezing cold temperatures directly outside the vessel._

" _If you're sorry, then take it back." Her voice was so small, it penetrated his heart like tiny needles. His t-shirt felt like it was slowly choking him, so he slipped his forefinger into the collar and stretched it away._

" _I can't," he whispered, closing his eyes and leaning his head into the back of the navigator's chair._

" _Why are you doing this?" she squeaked, almost inaudibly. Her eyes were welling, just like he'd seen them do countless times before. And it ripped him apart, as it always did, but he silently reminded himself that this would be the last time. "Where is this coming from? I thought you were happy…"_

" _I thought I was too," he muttered, feeling his eyes beginning to sting._

" _Then what changed?" she sniffed. He could hear the desperation in her voice. "I spoke to you a few days ago! When you got back from your first mission you were laughing."_

Not because of you.

" _Am I not good enough for you?" Her face scrunched up, causing his chest to tighten and twist. "I can change, talk to me. Tell me what's wrong and I'll be better!"_

_That almost undid him. It took all he had to choke back his own tears. "Clara, this isn't your fault," he spoke as steadily as he could. "And there's nothing either of us can do. I wish I didn't have to do this over the phone. You deserve better than that, but I didn't want to keep wasting your time either. You've got a life you're trying to build."_

" _But I don't want to build it without you!" Clara erupted into her hands, shoulders heaving while her soft wavy locks fell to the desk._

_It was a good thing they were separated by millions of kilometres, because Goten couldn't trust that he'd be able to refrain from comforting her if he was back home. "You will," he assured. "You're strong, and determined and so good at what you do. You'll make it, and forget all about me."_

" _How could I ever forget you?" Clara ran the back of her hand over her eyes. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me. You know that."_

_Goten wiped his thumb over his cheek._

" _Is this about Bulla?" Her eyes squeezed shut and lips pressed together._

" _Clara," Goten sighed, hoping they could just bypass the inevitable line of questioning he knew he had coming._

" _It is, isn't it." He saw her jaw tense right through the screen. "Something happened between you two. Am I right?" she choked. "Who made the first move. Was it you, or her?"_

" _It's not like that," he groaned. Hearing these accusations again churned his stomach, especially after developing such a genuine closeness with the princess. The fact that Bulla played such a frequent role in their arguments left him inexplicably guilty. She was obviously none the wiser, even making the effort to speak with Clara from time to time entirely of her own accord. "Nothing has happened between us," he exhaled. "We're just friends."_

" _Oh like Reco and that chick from that party were just friends?" she countered, eyes narrowing. "I know what these rich kids are like, Goten. Relationships mean nothing to them, they don't even try to keep their hands to themselves. Your niece is exactly the same."_

" _Don't go dragging them into this," he cautioned, reigning his temper at her tactless inclusion of his niece into the fray. "What Pan does is her own business… and do you have to go bringing up that other piece of shit?"_

" _Well since we're talking about him." Clara shook out her hair before crossing her arms, a familiar show of her belligerent side. "Does Reco know how well you two are 'getting along'?" She made air quotes, showing her clear disbelief at his assertion that things between himself and the heiress were entirely platonic. "Is this her way of getting back at him?"_

" _Bulla's not like that," he responded, biting back any further words for the pointless topic._

" _Oh really?" she responded, bitterness leaking. "Because the magazines seem to say otherwise!"_

" _The magazines don't know shit!" Goten exclaimed, losing just an ounce of grip and seeing her recoil. "She's nothing like how they portray her, alright? Bulla is a great person and I think if you ever made a genuine chance to get to know her, you'd love her."_

" _It seems like she already has you for that." Clara spoke with an unsettling calmness. "Goodbye Goten. If I run into Reco again I'll be sure to tell him you send your regards."_

* * *

As promised, Goten was kept on strict bed rest for another few days, though he couldn't help but sneak in a few stretches and katas when he sensed no one else around. It was easily the most boring handful of days he'd ever experienced. All he had to keep himself occupied was the occasional shared meal with the junior doctor, her bi-daily inspection of him and his progress, and, of course, his own thoughts. That was probably the worst part. As if he hadn't spent enough time doing that on the many mindless days aboard the Briefs spaceship, especially the last couple of weeks.

"Can you lift your arm?" Nel requested, wrapping him in a fresh lot of medical tape. Absently, he did as she said while he allowed his thoughts to drift.

* * *

" _What was that?" Trunks smirked, arms folded while he watched an increasingly fidgety Goten._

" _What was what?" Goten replied, feigning complete ignorance._

" _In this instance, yes," the older halfling mocked, imitating his friend's voice while he bobbed his head side to side. "What does that mean exactly? 'If your brother wasn't around, I'd be kissing more than your head,' Perhaps?"_

" _This again?" Goten sighed, rubbing his palm over the back of his neck in exasperation. He caught Bulla's curious glance as she exited the control room._ Please don't tell me she heard any of that. " _Can you drop it?"_

" _I just wanna know what you're more scared of," Trunks added. "What I'll do if you try anything with her, or what_ she'll  _do?" The arrogant son of Vegeta laughed. Genuine laughter._ Bastard.

_Goten simply ignored his taunting and headed for the exit._ Not interested in listening to this bullshit.

* * *

"Goten?" The young Saiyan waved her hand in front of his face, attempting to grab his attention. "Did you hear me? Or are you zoning out again."

"Uh, sorry." He offered a faint smile.

"Are you still feeling weak from the injuries... or is this about something else?" she glanced up, clearly testing the waters.

"No, I think I'm pretty much healed," he exhaled, bringing his fingertips to his scalp.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she tentatively put forward, continuing her wrapping.

"There's nothing to talk about," he murmured.

"Is this about that girl again? The one you kept asking about when you first woke up."

He narrowed his eyes at her in suspicion, but didn't respond.

"I still haven't heard anything," she offered, wiping her palm over the white strip at his abdomen and patting it down before making the final cut. "But you can tell me what's on your mind. It's not like I'll tell anyone."

"Like I said," he mumbled, glancing away. "Nothing to tell."

Nel let out a breath as she stood up. "I've gotten word that you're allowed to eat in the cafeteria now." She walked over to the sink and began washing her hands. "You've displayed willingness to cooperate, and haven't given me an ounce of grief." Nel perked her face up briefly. "Obviously I didn't tell them about that little incident when you woke up," she added with a smile. "So you're free to wander the ship by yourself. Be warned though, you're on a probation of sorts so try not to ruffle any feathers."

He gave a small nod. "Not really my style." Goten pulled on the rest of his bodysuit and slipped his arms through before zipping up. It hadn't taken long for him to be issued his very own set of Saiyan armour on account of his regular clothes being torn and a touch blood-soaked.

"I can walk you there, but I won't be joining you. I've still got some reports to get through."

They ambled in silence toward the cafeteria, passing dozens of curious black eyes. Once they reached the double doors, he pulled them open and was immediately hit with an aural assault. So much noise, chatter and laughter. It took a moment for him to orient himself.

Nel was still behind him, a hand pressed to the centre of his back while she gazed up warmly. "Have fun, I'll see you later and let you know how to find your new quarters."

"Sure." Goten crossed through the threshold. As expected, everyone's attention was on him in an instant.  _Man, I feel like a Briefs on this boat._ He glossed over the faces in turn, dark orbs landing on one man in particular. His heart jumped while his eyes shot open.  _Dad?_ The man was watching him with equal intensity.  _No way, look at that scar._  He discarded the thought.  _Plus it doesn't feel like my dad at all._ Goten averted his gaze and headed over to the line, grabbing a tray along the way.

After sitting down with his meal, he couldn't help but notice that his father's lookalike barely took his eyes off him. Discreetly, Goten stole the occasional glance, trying to take in as much as he could.  _He wears a cape? And he's surrounded by other powerful soldiers. Seems important._  He didn't appear all that engaged in the conversations around him though.

The halfling strategically kept his head down.  _Like Nel said,_ he told himself.  _They're watching you like a hawk. Don't give them a reason to suspect you of anything._

At that moment, the doors swung open and Goten's eyes leisurely dragged over to it, spying a white cape. Before he even knew what he was doing, the halfling launched himself up from the table and crashed right into the newcomer, knocking him to the ground while he gripped the man's neck.

" **Where is she?"** Goten roared, not even offering a warning before throwing the first swing.

"What?" Auber grunted, blood spilling from his mouth as he flung the demi-Saiyan off, grabbed him by both shoulders and tossed him through the doors into the adjacent passageway.

Goten rolled before jumping to his feet and adopting the stance his mother had ingrained in him so many years prior.

Auber flew after him in a blind fury and threw himself at the hybrid, sending the scuffle back to the ground, laying his own punches before Goten regained his bearings and clasped his fingers around the man's neck.

"What have you done with her?" Goten demanded from his back, feeling his hold on his temper hanging on a loose thread. He let out a pained groan when the Captain sunk his fist into the Goten's stomach.  _Enough playing around,_ he growled. In an instant, he ascended, flipping his adversary to the floor. "I swear if you hurt one hair on her head..." His fist was primed, ready to lay a fatal blow.

So caught up in the rage and confidence that accompanied his new form, Goten allowed his guard to drop, unintentionally presenting an opening that was soon taken. In a heartbeat, he caught a sharp blow to the head and skidded along the ship's floor.  _What the..?_

When he opened his eyes, the spitting image of his father, golden and unflinching, was towering over him. "Stand down," the man commanded.

Goten clenched his jaw, tightening his fist before pushing himself up, but once again he was caught unawares, feeling a knee digging into his chest while a harsh face glared back at him. "Stand. Down," he repeated through gritted teeth.

_I won't gain anything by fighting these guys,_ he sighed, realising he'd just thrown away any semblance of goodwill he'd managed to build up over the past few days by behaving himself in the infirmary. Goten dropped the back of his head to the floor with a sigh and reverted to his base form, hair and eyes effortlessly slipping back to black.

_Dammit._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge thank you for the praise/kudos/bookmarks and feedback thus far. It's been so massively encouraging.


	18. Contact

" _Huh?" Goten shook his head, snapping himself out of the daze he'd apparently been in while he stared at the bathroom door with folded arms._

" _I said." Trunks rolled his eyes while he watched the dark-haired fighter from the two-seater. "Are you trying to master that x-ray vision technique we used to joke about as kids? Now that you've made me say it twice, it's not funny anymore."_

" _It wouldn't have been funny the first time," Goten grumbled._

" _Look, man." The older halfling let out a breath. "I know I've been yanking your chain about Bulla for the past few weeks, but when we spoke after Bhander-"_

" _Trunks," Goten warned, giving him a look that hopefully nipped the conversation in the bud._

_"I gave my protective older brother bit," Trunks continued. "And I believed you when you said you wouldn't go there, but even you have to admit that things are different now." Goten caught his own reflection in the mirror and could see that the vein running past his temple was already bulging. "Back then both of you were seeing other people. And even then, it still set off alarm bells in my head."_

_"I already told you-"_

" _She's my baby sister, and I love her to death." All signs of jest were dissolved from the oldest hybrid's features. "I just watched her self-worth get shattered into a million pieces and I'm willing to bet she's going to be putting herself back together for a while."_

" _I know," Goten nodded, arms still crossed. "I was on the ship with her too. Why are you telling me this?"_

" _All I'm saying is." Trunks' expression was careful, but stern. "Don't be that guy."_

" _What guy?" he asked, readjusting his stance and lifting his nose in challenge._

_"Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about." Trunks cast him a cautionary look. "_ _At the same time..."_ _The CC president wiped a palm over his rapidly contorting face, clearly perturbed by the topic. "_ _Not_ _that I'm trying to encourage you or anything, but I feel obligated to let you know that if you genuinely like her," he sighed. "Probably don't drag your feet either. If there's one thing I've learned about Bulla over the years, it's that she never stays single for long."_

_Goten's nostrils flared. "So what is it exactly you're trying to tell me, Trunks?" He was glaring at the older hybrid with palpable annoyance, but the bathroom door swung open before they had a chance to come to any conclusion, revealing a shimmery dress-clad princess pulling the strap of her shoe with one hand and absently fiddling with an earring with the other._

Holy shit, _he gaped._

* * *

"Straight to the void, Bardock!" Auber barked, marching behind with yet more soldiers in tow while Goten and their apparent leader strode out front.

Bardock's hand was gripping the back of Goten's neck while he led him down the hallway, silent and stoic.

"You'll have me toss him overboard, will you?" Bardock questioned calmly, though Goten felt the tone almost held a level of mocking.

 _Oh man, I fucked up._ He closed his eyes on an exhale while he continued forward. _Can't say I expected them to know how to mask their power levels. That's what I get for acting without thinking first._

Instead of taking him to the airlock, as Goten had expected, already preparing himself for the fight of his life, Bardock brought him to a regular looking door and shoved him inside, following after and shutting it behind him.

 _Interesting?_ Goten mused, deep-toned eyes quietly cataloguing the new space and spying a desk, chair and lamp, as well as various other bits and pieces of alien tech he didn't recognise. _Seems almost like a private office. Never took Saiyans to be the type._

"Auber's right." Bardock finally spoke, arms folded while he regarded him carefully. "You've been enough trouble. I _should_ throw you to the void."

"You think you could?" Goten challenged, earning himself a swing to the face. All humour slipped while he held the caught fist in his hand, meeting the Saiyan's staunch glare.

"It seems we've both underestimated each other," Bardock eventually smirked, dropping his arm and relaxing his stance. "Enough with the games. Tell me who you are."

"And why would I do that?" Goten straightened, but stayed on high alert. While the man didn't seem all that much older, he definitely came across as more seasoned and Goten hadn't exactly kept that axe sharp over the years, especially against real foes.

"Because it's the only thing keeping you alive right now," he responded coolly. "I know you're Saiyan, so why don't you just lay off the tough guy act and answer the question. Try to remember that not only are you severely outnumbered, you are also in deep space. Let's see if you're capable of making smart decisions."

 _Are they all Super Saiyans? I have no idea what my chances are against these guys._ Goten was admittedly wary but still couldn't bring himself to budge.

"I forgot to mention." Bardock clasped his hands together, a smug smile creeping onto his face. "You keep asking about some blue-haired girl, correct?"

The demi-Saiyan stiffened, tentatively meeting the warrior's gaze.

"I might have some information on her," he continued. "But I'm not at liberty to talk about it with just anyone."

"I just want to know if she's okay," Goten exhaled, feeling himself growing weary of staying on edge all the time. "And my other friend too. I haven't seen either of them since Advent." He still couldn't figure out what to make of these temperamental fighters, but he had to acknowledge that he'd already done more than enough to warrant their hostility. True universe seven Saiyans weren't exactly the most patient or forgiving types if Vegeta was anything to go on. "And I don't like what I remember seeing before I blacked out."

"Last chance," Bardock warned.

"Fine," Goten sighed as he leaned against the desk. _I hope I won't regret this later._ "Yes, I'm half-Saiyan."

"Half?" Bardock reared, eyes widening while he dropped his arms.

"Yes," Goten affirmed. "Half."

"Who are your parents?" he demanded, edging closer. "What's the other half?"

"My parents are earthlings," the hybrid elaborated reluctantly. "My father was sent there from Planet Vegeta as a baby and ended up making a life for himself."

Goten didn't miss the unexpected breath Bardock drew, along with the dilating of his pupils against already dark irises. " _Kakarot…"_ he murmured, barely above a whisper.

Immediately, the hybrid frowned in suspicion. "How did you know that?"

"What are you-?!" Gadgets clamoured to the floor as Goten shuffled backwards, attempting to dodge the sudden bubble intrusion as Bardock flashed in front of him and gripped his face with one hand while pulling at his growing black mane with the other. _What the fuck! Is he about to kiss me or something?_ "Look, man, I'm flattered but I don't-"

"It really is true," Bardock uttered, an unexpected light entering his eyes as a genuine smile began to appear on his, thus far, mostly expressionless facade. "Even against the prince…"

"What are you talking about?" Goten pawed at him, attempting to build some distance between their two bodies.

"He lived." The man shook his head, grin broadening. "Just like his mother and I told him to."

Goten couldn't stop his jaw from dropping. " _You're_ my dad's father?" he blurted, all tension falling to the wayside and replaced by overwhelming bewilderment. "My grandfather is the leader of the Saiyans?"

_This is fucking crazy._

"Used to be," Bardock corrected, straightening while he regained his composure. "I led the charge for six years after our king was killed. Then I stepped down and passed the reins to my oldest son, Raditz."

_Raditz?_

"Which one is he?" Goten asked, mentally scanning through the many faces he'd encountered so far.

"No one here," he told him. "You'll meet him once we get to Crest."

"So you're not making me walk the plank then, I take it?" Goten asked, raising his brows in optimism.

Bardock lifted his nose while he eyed him for a few moments. "Make no mistake, mutt. We may share blood, but my first priority is always the women and men under my command."

_I think I prefer my other grandpa._

"But if you can keep yourself from pissing off the others," he added with a wry smirk, "As well as myself," and walked towards the door, resting his fingers on the handle. "Your gall may well earn you a spot amongst our ranks."

"Wait!" Goten called out as Bardock stepped through the threshold. "My friends..." He tensed his jaw. "The girl."

"She's fine," Bardock offered, but that wasn't enough.

"Where is she?" Goten pushed himself up and strode towards his newfound relative, expression serious once more. "What did Auber do to her?"

"I've already said more than I'm supposed to," Bardock spoke sternly. "But rest assured, she couldn't be in safer hands anywhere in the galaxy." Goten desperately wanted to believe he was telling the truth.

After a pause, the ex-leader continued. " _You,_ on the other hand, won't be if you keep antagonising the Captain. Let your beef go, and you'll get your chance to see her again."

* * *

"Goten!" Nel exclaimed, leaping up from her chair once he entered the medical bay. "What were you _thinking_ taking on Captain Auber? And right in front of Bardock, no less." She pressed her palm to her forehead in exasperation. "I can't believe you're still alive."

The demi-Saiyan shrugged, looking away sheepishly. "I wasn't thinking."

She brought her fingers to his cheekbone, causing him to flinch when she grazed a blooming purple bruise under his eye. "You fighters, I swear," she mumbled to herself. "The work never stops."

"I'm fine." He nudged her hand away. "I didn't come here for treatment, I just needed to find out where my new bed is."

"Oh, right." Nel stepped back, a look of minor disappointment. "Initially you were assigned to the third-floor dormitories, but now I'm not so sure. They might take that freedom away after your transgression."

"Bardock's given me the green light," Goten replied, eliciting a flash of surprise from the smaller Saiyan. "As long as I leave Auber alone."

"I see." Nel nodded slowly. "You're not off to the best start, are you?" she smiled sympathetically. "Like you, Bardock's different from the others." She glanced away for a moment. "He thinks clearly, but I didn't expect him to be so forgiving." Her expression turned playful. "You must be special."

Goten hesitated, but soon realised that word would probably get out soon enough. "I guess you could say that. I just found out he's my grandfather."

" **What?!** " she belted, eyes growing wider than he'd ever seen them. "Oh my god. The Kaiser has a son?" Nel threw both palms to her face before muttering into them. "No wonder." She opened her eyes through her fingers, and Goten could see her watching him with unexpected bashfulness.

"What you do you mean?" His brows drew together in confusion. "Who's the Kaiser? Or whatever you just said. Do you know my father?"

"Wait." She dropped her hands. "You don't know who the Kaiser is? What's your father's name?"

"...Goku," he answered cautiously.

" _Goku?_ " she blurted, face scrunching. "Bardock has another son?" he heard her ask herself. "Uh, let's get you to your new bunk." Without another word, she glided towards the door.

After following a series of passageways that Goten was urging himself to to memorise, they came across a lift. "So Bardock mentioned his older kid is the new leader," he voiced while they waited. "What's he like?"

"Yes, the Kaiser," she breathed. He was almost sure he saw her buckle despite standing still. "He's..." She waved her hand in her face. "Something."

"Something?" he repeated, amused at her sudden slip in composure.

"He's definitely his father's son," she finally offered, pulling herself together. She cast Goten a discreet glance. "The genes run strong on that family."

When the elevator arrived, the two stepped inside and waited for it to reach the third floor. In the corner of his eye, Goten could see her fidgeting, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. _Does she need to pee or something?_

Once they landed on their desired level, Nel marched through and promptly spun on her boot to face him, almost causing Goten to crash right into her.

"The blue-haired girl," she began, watching him closely after an audible gulp. "Is she your mate?"

"Huh?" he frowned. "What does that mean?"

"Are you two… together," she clarified. "Like, fucking. Exclusively."

"Uh." Goten was _mildly_ taken aback by the completely unexpected question. "No?"

"Good," she breathed before throwing her arms around his neck and planting a hearty smooch on his mouth.

His lids burst open at the action, followed by hands thrown up in surrender while he leaned backwards.

She pulled away with a pant, mortification slowly flooding her features. "Argh, you don't like me," she moaned, bringing her palms to her beet-red face. "It's because I don't fight, right?" she squirmed. "Almost everyone likes their lovers strong and feisty, especially the higher-ups…" Nel's shoulders slumped. "I was hoping you'd be more like Bardock."

"No, no!" he sputtered, still showing his palms in appeasement. "It's not like that, I just… wasn't expecting that."

"Really?" She peered up optimistically. "Should I have been more obvious? The other women always say I'm too subtle."

"Uh," he stalled. "I can't say I'm always the most observant person, I probably get that from my dad," he offered, bringing one hand to rest on the back of his head while he unthinkingly displayed his iconic family grin. "I'm sorry if I gave you the wrong impression."

"You didn't." She shook her head in shame. "I was just being wishful. You look so much like them," she sighed as a defeated smile overtook her features. "But you're a million times sweeter. I swear our men could learn a thing or two from you. The ladies too."

"Uhm." Goten threw his thumb over his shoulder, pointing down the hallway. "I'm gonna..."

"Right." Nel pivoted and marched back into the lift, muttering something to herself under her breath.

 _Oh geez,_ he shuddered, running his fingers through his hair while he swivelled around and began making his way down the passage.

Dark eyes glossed over the shiny plaques outside each new hallway while Goten sought his desired wing.

 _Here we are._ He strode through the open doorway.

"Oh, fuck, sorry!" Immediately, he covered his eyes and backtracked, face burning with embarrassment after walking in on a fully nude female soldier traipsing around the room.

Back in the passage, he glanced at the sign outside the entrance. _This should be it? Unless they gave me the wrong number._

"Uh, sorry for barging in on you," he called out, keeping his palm over his eyes. "But I'm looking for seven A."

"This is it," she told him easily. "You're the new guy?"

He peeked through his fingers, trying to gauge whether she was fully clothed yet, before quickly snapping them together again when he realised she certainly was not.

"Yeah. Goten," he affirmed. "I think I must have been assigned the wrong wing though. It looks like I'm on the ladies' floor."

"No, you're in the right place." She pulled his arm down with a smirk while he kept his gaze firmly on her face, neck so stiff it could have snapped right off his shoulders. "Your bed's over here." She sauntered past a string of single sleeper cots before resting her hand on the metal rail of one six bunks over.

"Who's this?" a deep voice asked from behind the demi-Saiyan, slipping past him while he entered the room.

"Goten," the woman smiled playfully before sitting on her own bed and pulling on her bodysuit. "The one who gave Auber that black eye earlier. He's cute, huh?"

The aforementioned halfling ambled over to his newly designated haven and sat down at the edge, looking between the two soldiers cautiously.

"Toilets are here." She pointed to the door on the left, "Showers there," And gestured to the one on the right. "I'm Prin, that's Steen."

Goten nodded, noting how oddly straightforward she was.

"You'll meet the rest as they trickle in," Prin added, swinging her legs over her mattress to face him. "Wanna spar?"

* * *

"Tell me about more him," Bardock breathed, bringing his forearm up to his face to block Goten's weighty punch. "You've suggested before that he's strong?"

Goten couldn't help but bark a laugh at the question. "Strong doesn't even scratch the surface, man," he grinned, ducking as a gold-tipped boot flew past his head. "He's the strongest."

"So he's reached ascension?" Bardock crouched, crossing his fists while Goten delivered an unrelenting series of kicks. "Like you have."

"And then some," he chuckled. "You guys realise that Super Saiyan is just the beginning, right? I got there at seven."

"Seven?" Bardock straightened in surprise before hopping back to avoid another blow. "Are you some kind of prodigy?"

"Hardly." Goten shook his head, warm smile still planted. "Just a Son. My brother reached an even higher transformation by eleven. Something my own father hadn't achieved at that point as a grown man."

"If you're so powerful." Bardock put up his hand, signalling a pause in the match before reaching down for his drink. "Why didn't you just slaughter everyone when you first woke up on my ship?" He squeezed the body of the bottle and a stream of water sprayed into his open mouth.

"My mother raised me to be kind-hearted," Goten answered with a shrug, taking a deep breath and wiping his sleeve across his forehead. "And avoid harming others as far as possible. My father instilled the same values when he returned." He looked to his grandfather, silently wondering if the two would ever have the chance to meet. "He's possibly the most powerful person I've ever come across, and he's never used it to marginalise a single living soul." Goten sat down on the training room floor, leaning into his palms. "I don't seek carnage," he smiled to himself. "but I'll be honest. I very nearly killed your Captain the first time I saw him on here."

A faint smiled pulled at the older Saiyan's mouth too. "Auber tends to have that effect on people. It's why he's assigned to my ship, despite being under Turles' command."

"Who's Turles?" Goten sniffed, throwing his head back as he caught his breath. "I feel like I've heard his name around the dorms."

"Raditz' top General," Bardock stretched his left arm across his chest before rotating his shoulder, wincing lightly as he rolled through what Goten presumed to be tensely coiled muscle. "And second in command. You mention a brother?"

The halfling pushed into his hands, gesturing for his grandfather to spin around. Bardock watched him for a doubtful moment. "C'mon," Goten insisted. "I picked up a few things from a friend a while back." The patriarch eventually grunted, conceding to the offer. "And yeah, Gohan." Goten started to knead, digging his thumb under Bardock's shoulder blade. "I think he's actually met your other son. I remember him telling me a story once, years ago, about getting kidnapped by some angry Saiyan who claimed to be my dad's brother." His grandfather cast him a curious look. "I forgot all about it until a few days ago - I knew I recognised the name somehow."

"Gohan," Bardock repeated, playing with the word in his mouth. "He must have been the boy Raditz intended on taking back to Nappa and Vegeta, after Kakarot refused his offer," he recalled. "Raditz spoke highly of the kid's potential."

"Well, he certainly called it." The hybrid proceeded to work at the knot. "Gohan's unbelievable. And he's barely trained, compared to my dad."

"He _doesn't train_?" Bardock sounded positively offended by the idea.

"Well, no, not really," Goten laughed, clapping him on the back to signal he was done with the impromptu massage. "He's a family man for the most part, although his daughter definitely got that Saiyan fight ethic." He felt a nostalgic pull at the thought of his niece, almost snorting at the reminder of her endless series of very public mishaps. "I think you'd like her. She would've fit right in if she ended up joining us like she was supposed to."

"All that power." Bardock narrowed his eyes as he turned to face the the hybrid. "Wasted on soft-hearted fools."

Goten could only shake his head, thick dark hair beginning to fall into his eyes. "Maybe that soft-heart is the catalyst for the power," he voiced, glancing at his grandfather in amusement. _If only I could tell him how far Vegeta's come since embracing what he cherishes most. I still remember him from before… Everything changed after Buu._

Goten suddenly heard a screech, followed by a mechanical groan rumbling from deep within the ship's walls before it lurched, causing him to buck forward.

"Again," Bardock grumbled, promptly pivoting and stomping towards the doors.

"Want some help?" Goten jogged after the older Saiyan.

"There's nothing for you to do," he answered, exasperated. "Get something to eat. I'll join you later."

The two went opposite directions once they left the gymnasium, Bardock, presumably, towards the engine room while Goten sought the cafeteria.

He strode through the doors, spinning his tray once he grabbed it from the stack, mouth already watering as he headed for the serving station.

"Goten, over here!" he heard someone calling out while he waited for his dish to be filled. The man behind the cabinet gave him a thumbs up as he added a few extra pieces of roasted meat.

"Thanks, Bori," Goten grinned before twisting around and seeking a table. _Spoilt for choice_ , he smiled to himself as he took in the sea of welcoming faces beckoning him to join them.

"Hey, guys." He slotted in next to his dorm-mates this time. "Thanks for leaving me a seat."

He felt something tickling at his ear and saw a furry snake-looking appendage in the corner of his eye, immediately swatting it away. A husky laugh could soon be heard as one of the soldiers cackled to her squadmate.

"I'll eat that tail if you don't keep it to yourself, Marra," he threatened teasingly, chomping at it when she brought it back for another taunt.

"No way, half-breed," she dismissed his warning, stabbing her fork into her steak and licking her lips in anticipation. "If you were fast enough for that, you would have done it by now." With a wink, she brought her lunch to her mouth.

"Oh yeah?" Goten offered a boyish grin as she bit down, her eager teeth clamping on cool, hard metal.

"Huh?" she reared, perplexed at her cutlery. The rest of the table slowly bubbled with sniggers and snorts as their gazes travelled between the two bantering roommates while Goten froze with inflated cheeks. Her eyes slowly ballooned as the realisation hit. "You-!" She launched herself at the guilty demi-Saiyan, sending him to the floor with a crash.

"Ah!" he yelled out between coughs of laughter, still trying to chew his massive mouthful. Marra grabbed his jaw with her left hand and plunged the right into his mouth. He warbled in protest, before seeing another set of legs towering over him. Steen was joining the scuffle.

Before he knew it, Goten had a mound of bodies on top of him, and it was growing by the second. Wild hands grabbed him all over while he was still simply attempting to swallow his lunch. "Guys!" he wailed, jerking violently as he attempted to guard his stomach.

A pair of arms hooked under his own, dragging out from under the Saiyan pile-up. _Phew._ He was about to thank his saviour, until he saw a furious Marra glaring at him with puffed cheeks, rage so palpable he could have sworn she was on the verge of going super.

"I'll get you another!" He showed his palms, immediately conceding. "Just don't give me that look."

She threw her arm toward the food display. "They're out, _Goten._ "

 _Oh, crap!_ he winced. "Next time there's steak, I'll give you mine!"

"We _never_ get steak, you greedy mutt." There were flames in her eyes.

"I can make it up to you!" he promised, reaching for any way to placate her he could think of. "I'll, I'll-"

A smile suddenly appeared on her face, growing into a wide grin before she straightened her spine and burst into bawdy laughter. "You're too easy, earthling." She gave him a light punch on the shoulder and he let out a sigh of relief. All too quickly her face dropped back to one of deadly seriousness. "You do owe me your next steak though."

* * *

Goten stared at the ceiling from his single sleeper bed, drowning out the dozens of snores and wheezes around him as he spent yet another night in the third-floor dormitories. Not usually a light sleeper, he couldn't get himself to doze off despite the surprising ease with which he'd settled into the Saiyans' routine.

As it had countless times since finding himself on the Saiyan fleet, his thoughts drifted to his fellow hybrids. His fears about their safety had eased over the weeks as he grew increasingly and unexpectedly familiar with his fellow warriors. From what he'd gathered, they weren't as bloodthirsty as he first presumed though he also realised that they certainly weren't opposed to bringing the heat when they felt the situation called for it.

Goten quickly learned that the Saiyans worked hard, trained harder and all seemed to be pushing in the same direction. He couldn't deny how much the feeling of camaraderie ignited his soul, sating a hole he never even realised he had. _I can only imagine how much Trunks would've loved this if he had the chance,_ he pondered remorsefully. _He always longed for brothers. And these women are tough as nails._

Musings of his closest friend naturally evolved into fleeting images of the man's sister. Goten felt a familiar yank in his chest, along with an even more familiar stirring further south.

"Hnng," he groaned, flipping over to smush his face into the musty pillow. Flashes of Bulla's faces plagued him regularly, even after he'd stopped worrying about her welfare. While he suspected Bardock had gotten his hands dirty more than once over the years, he knew by now that the man had honour, and Goten believed him when he insisted she was safe.

No, his thoughts were far more selfish than that these days-

He heard movement nearby and soon felt his covers being lifted.

" _What are you-_ " He was cut off when a pair of lips pressed into his own, hard and hungry. Before he knew it, eager fingers wrapped around his erection while a slim leg brushed over his shin. " _Prin._ " He pulled away and nudged her hand. " _Stop._ "

" _Why?_ " she breathed. He could feel her smile broadening against his mouth. " _You're enjoying it._ "

" _Because._ " His leg jerked involuntarily when she grabbed him again. "Ah!" He fell out of his own cot when he backed away too far, landing on the hard ground with an ungraceful thud. Sniggering could be heard above him as she flicked on a wall light, revealing a mischievous grin while she hung over the side of his bed.

"I'm up here, Goten," she taunted.

He brought his fingers to his eyes with a groan. "Go to sleep."

"How am I supposed to sleep with you tossing and turning next to me?" she countered. "We both know what the problem is, so why don't we just fu-"

He threw his palm to her mouth, eyes darting around the room as he looked to the other sleeping soldiers. " _We're going to wake everyone up,_ " he scolded as he turned the light back off.

He heard her snort. "Please. No one cares. If that was a deterrent none of us would ever get laid."

Goten had to give her that. He'd be lying if he said he hadn't picked up some questionable noises most nights. But as relaxed as he generally was, even this went beyond what he was comfortable with. Probably.

" _Can I have my bed back?_ " he requested, pushing himself up in exasperation.

"Not until you tell me why you won't fuck anyone," she put forward bluntly. "It's not like you don't have the equipment." Prin gazed down appreciatively. "And I've seen you check us out, so I know you're into chicks."

" _Why do you need a reason?"_ He was keeping his voice low even though Prin herself showed no such consideration for their neighbours. " _I just don't want to, alright?"_

"Uh, I'm pretty sure you do," she laughed smugly. "I felt it myself."

Goten let out a tired exhale. " _Can you just drop it?"_

"Suit yourself," she shrugged before rolling off his bed and returning to her own.

When the coast was clear, he climbed back up and crawled under his sheets with a sigh. Maybe one of these days he'd take her up on her offer. Or one of the other women who persisted in propositioning him. It's not like they hadn't all seen each other naked plenty of times, and Kami knew he could do with the release...

* * *

She's nervous, _he realised, watching her curiously in the hotel's elevator mirror, twitching and rubbing her bare arm._ About what? _Perhaps he wasn't being especially subtle as he took in her breathless appearance, but when he looked away, he occasionally caught her stealing her own glances._

 _Once the lift dinged, and doors drew open, she stepped out first. Unthinkingly, he watched her saunter ahead of him, momentarily hypnotised by the sway of her hips as she strode towards their room, entirely unaware of the effect she'd been having on him all night. His pulse began to climb while his loins stirred to life. Striding casually behind her, Goten realised that if he ever had any intention of making a move, that time was now, and his window was rapidly closing. While his usual voice of rationality attempted to list all the reasons he should keep his lust in check, another was sneaking through._ Start going for what you want, or live to regret it, Son.

_So he reached for her hand and kissed her. Her lips were even more dangerous than he'd imagined. Full, soft and entirely intoxicating. And then she slapped him._

_He thought that was it. He'd taken his shot and come up empty, until the door swung open and everything that followed was one heated blur. His mouth acted of its own accord, devouring every inch of exposed skin while his hands explored each alluring curve he'd dare spy over the course of their journey. Her faint moans and whimpers unbound untold weeks of restrained desire._

_Before he knew it, he was on top of her, feeling her impossibly smooth skin under his fingers while he dragged her silky dress up past her head, unveiling the most forbidden, but delicious of fruit he'd encountered across the entire galaxy. After taking a moment to gaze at her in all her royal glory, he felt the final mental tether snap._

_Or maybe that was his conscience, warning him of what was to come if he didn't get off her and straighten himself up within the tiny handful of seconds it would take for her brother to open the door and find them christening the single hotel room bed._

* * *

"We're only a few days out from Crest at most," Bardock informed while they walked down the temporary bridge. "So this arrangement won't last forever."

"Sure," Goten shrugged. It didn't affect him too much. All it meant was that there'd be more soldiers around. Plus, word around the place was the vessel they were joining up with housed a number of other high-ranking Saiyans, including the infamous Raditz. It never crossed his mind that there could be other ships around, but he figured it was fortuitous in this instance, since it allowed their own troublesome carrier to hitch a ride.

He continued forward, vaguely listening to Bardock's instructions which mostly consisted of warning him to behave himself around the Kaiser and his esteemed General - they were more powerful than they seemed, he insisted, especially his son. Goten hadn't built up the rapport with these two yet, he added. And they were known to be significantly less patient than Bardock was. Turles and Nappa in particular, he emphasised, though he wouldn't be meeting Nappa just yet. Goten simply nodded along.

A jolt flashed through him suddenly, and he felt all his fine hairs stand on end. Slowly, he lifted his gaze, drowning out Bardock's gravelly voice as his eyes dragged over three sets of gold-tipped boots coming from the opposite direction. With a gulp he carried his gaze upward, noting that the set in the middle was attached to long, lithe feminine limbs covered in a black, skintight bodysuit. There was something brown wrapping itself around her upper thigh, giving him temporary pause.

Past her waist was a shade of blue he'd been denied for weeks, hanging straight and loose. He followed the waterfall of locks up to its source, spotting dainty fingers pressed to a flushed face, watery aquamarine orbs threatening to spill at a moment's notice.

 _Bulla._ His heart stopped.

 


	19. Heaven and Hell

_This has to be a hallucination,_  Bulla choked as she wrapped her arms around Goten's neck, squeezed as though he were about to be taken away from her at any second, and breathed him in. Her legs quivered when she took in the wonderfully familiar scent, nose already deep in his collarbone. She could have died from elation she felt when his warm, gentle hands touched her back, sliding over her spine as he tightened his own hold, burying his face in her hair. Her first real hug in a lifetime.

" _Oh my God,"_  she uttered, willing time to freeze. The weight of her repressed heartache hit her like a freight train as her face instantly dampened, unrestrained sobs slowly drenching his bodysuit. The crying only amplified when she felt his hand travel to the back of her head and stroke her silky locks, scratchy stubble grazing along her temple.

" _You're okay_ ," she heard him whisper to himself as he exhaled into her hair.

Reluctant to disturb the moment, Bulla couldn't help but lift her head to look at him once more, still floating on disbelief, glassy-eyed and covered in her own snot. She almost melted into a puddle when she saw that all too reassuring soft Son smile grow before he planted a kiss on her forehead.

" _I've missed you so much,"_  she squeaked, face crumpling all over again.

"I missed you too," he grinned, wiping her cheeks with his thumb. Dragging her sleeve under her nostrils, she attempted to get the worst of the mucous, but couldn't bring herself to care too much. This may have been the biggest high she'd ever experienced in her life. "You are okay, right?" he asked, expression warm as ever while he held both hands to either side of her face.

All she could do was nod while she continued to beam like an idiot. "They've been good to me," she managed to get out as she slowly turned to face the men in question. "Sort of."

Turles was regarding both demi-Saiyans with folded arms and a cocked eyebrow but her sense of joy came crashing to the ground when she transferred her gaze to the warrior next to him, chest clenching at his slowly deepening expression. Bulla had spent enough time around the stoic Saiyan to recognise how much even the mildest of contortions suggested a markedly heavier load of unspoken thoughts. Her eyes travelled to his tail, wrapped around her leg only a moment before, slowly returning to coil at his waist.

"Raditz, Turles," she sniffed, clutching Goten's hand while she led him towards to the two veteran fighters. "This is Goten." Bulla smiled back at him as he extended a palm to greet them.

Neither man took his hand, although that wasn't too out of the ordinary. Despite the fact that not a single alien had ever accepted one of their handshakes, the three well-mannered earthlings couldn't help but try anyway.

"We know who you are," Turles spoke gruffly, staying fixed to his position. Bulla threw Raditz a look as she realised,  _Of course they know who's amongst their ranks_. Suddenly, she felt herself deflating. Goten had apparently been out in space this entire time and none of them thought to so much as hint at it to put her concerns to bed.

"You're Kakarot's son," Raditz stated, keeping his demeanour characteristically neutral.

"Uh, yeah," Goten smiled, bringing his palm up to his neck. "You know my dad?"

"He's my brother," the Kaiser answered bluntly, observing him with care.

Goten reared, dark orbs widening. "Wait,  _you're_  my uncle?" He pointed to Raditz while he looked questioningly to Turles. " _You're_ Raditz?"

"You've heard of him?" Bulla asked curiously.

"Yeah, Bardock-" He twisted around to point at the guard who had entered with him. Bulla was so taken in by the sight of her brother's oldest friend, she didn't even spare a glance to the man who had flanked him when he arrived.

_Bardock._ Bulla found herself staring at yet another of Pan's unexpected relatives.  _Kami, he looks just like Goku too!_ she gasped quietly.  _Whoa, what a scar._

"He told me that his eldest son is in charge," Goten added, gesturing to the long-haired warrior. "That must be you."

"Must be." Raditz crossed his arms.

Silence hung in the air for a few seconds, palpable tension slowly building. Bulla looked between the three men, noting the pure-blooded Saiyans' cool demeanour.  _I forgot how harsh they were when I first met them,_ she all but shuddered _._

"So what's going on?" She looked to the Kaiser. "Why is Goten here all of a sudden?"

"My ship has been having mechanical trouble," Bardock finally voiced from behind her, joining the four in the centre of the hallway. "After repeated attempts at repairing it, it was decided that we were best to combine the fleets."

"Oh." Bulla couldn't help but marvel at him once more, staring far longer than would be considered polite by earth standards. "Okay. Well, whatever the reason." She wrapped her arms around Goten's waist and leaned her cheek into his shoulder. "I just hope I'm not dreaming." He looped his arm around her, faint smile aimed down at her before he returned his cautious gaze to the towering man in front of them.

"Bardock," Raditz voiced rather tersely, leisurely lifting his own gaze from the dark-haired demi-Saiyan and looking to his father. He nodded his head down the hallway and the two men walked off without another word, leaving Bulla with the lookalikes. She observed Turles while he took in her fellow earthling, seeing his eyes tense briefly before he glanced back at the heiress.

"Goten," she heard Bardock call out as he beckoned the halfling over. Goten loosened his arm, but hesitated. The two hybrids exchanged a glance, and Bulla fleetingly wondered if he was thinking the same thing as her right now.

_Not yet,_ she pleaded quietly. Already she could feel anxiety building at the thought of losing him again after all this time.

"I guess it's time for a family huddle," he jested, taking a step away from her. The heiress' arm was fully extended as she held on to his hand. He gave her a reassuring wink before dropping it and joining the others, leaving Bulla to watch after the three generations of Son men, a shiver passing through her as her eyes took in the impossible sight of Goten and Raditz walking off, side-by-side. Neither remotely aware of how intimately she'd been involved with the other.

_Holy shit._ Her heart pounded in her ears.  _What have I done?_

"Interesting."

The sound of Turles' voice snapped her out of her reverie.

"Huh?" She pivoted to look at him, still feeling decidedly dazed.

He watched the backs of the three men turn the corner before dropping his gaze to the heiress and she joined him when he spun in his boot to proceed in the opposite direction.

" **What?"**  she eventually exclaimed when she caught him observing her out if the corner of his eye for the umpteenth time.

He simply smirked, fixing his gaze ahead.

"General."

Both turned at hearing the voice, and Bulla drew in a sharp breath when she spotted the face it came from, recoiling at the sight and bumping her back into Turles' armour. Immediately, she readied herself for a mighty launch.

" **You!** " she belted, pulling forward but feeling restraint around her middle as she swiped at the man's face, missing by a hair.

He leaned back, that same dark smile from so long ago beginning to surface. Bulla pawed at Turles' hands, attempting to uncurl them from her waist, but his grasp merely tightened.

"Auber," Turles greeted plainly, as if he wasn't currently battling to keep a feral Saiyan princess in his clutches.

"She hasn't changed much since I saw her last," the Captain let out a gruff chuckle, coming to a stop once he reached them.

"Let me go, Turles," Bulla growled, still writhing in his hold. "I have a bone to pick with this guy."

"Do you now?" Auber's smile broadened while he clasped his hands behind his back. Oh, how she was itching to scratch that grin right off his smug face. "And what's the problem exactly? You seem rather settled to me." He pinched the fabric on her arm. "It's a better look than those rags we found you in," he added before tapping his hand to the side of her face. "I forgot how-"

Bulla slammed her elbow into Turles' gut, eliciting a grunt as he bucked and lost his grip.

She threw herself at the shit-stirring Captain but was once again intercepted when Turles' grabbed one of her wrists, followed by the other while she seethed at the man in front of her, teeth gritted as aquamarine orbs bored into him. Auber didn't even flinch while she held her face centimetres from his own.

"Oh-ho," he barked out a laugh. "I envy the fun you all must have had with this one around. Good call choosing the girl."

"She's a pain," Turles grumbled, yanking her back and wrapping his fingers around her bicep. "We should have just left her behind."

"What does he mean 'choosing the girl'?" Bulla turned questioningly, only to be ignored by the temperamental Saiyan behind her. " _Turles,"_ she warned, narrowing her eyes and ripping her arm free.

He simply glared down at her, keeping his expression unreadable.

"I still can't believe I caught us a princess," Auber chuckled, shaking his head. "Who would have thought." He reached for a clump of strands hanging past her shoulder. "That Saiyans could come in blue."

Bulla promptly swatted his hand away, frowning at the stark reminder of their first encounter. "Don't touch me, you sicko," she sneered, widening the distance between them. "And be sure to spread the word to the rest of your fleet too, since they wouldn't have heard the announcement." She brought a finger to his face in warning. "No one lays a finger on Bulla."

He looked to Turles in amusement. "Is that so? And what makes him the exception?"

"I'm not kidding," she growled, clenching her fist. "I hit hard. Just ask your General."

Auber raised an eyebrow at said General, clearly intrigued by her assertion. "She's a mouthy one, isn't she?" he mused.

"You have no idea," Turles muttered. "Swap us. Bardock's boy for the prince's daughter." After a few seconds, he added, "In fact, just take her."

"Gladly." Auber hooked his arm around her back, pressing his palm to the cool chest piece covering her ribs. Before he even had a chance to take a breath, she reared her tightened fist and thrust it into his face, sending him careening down the hallway and into the wall, a look of complete astonishment overwhelming his features.

Turles let out a snort as he continued walking, while Bulla kept her nose lifted. A cheeky smile pulled at the end of her mouth as she quietly asked, "You set him up for that, didn't you?"

His tail uncurled and swayed behind him. "You have your moments."

* * *

Bulla held her hand to her mouth, attempting to muffle her giggles, but before long she pulled it away and let out an emphatic laugh. Goten had only been on the ship for a few hours, but already she was feeling lighter than she had in weeks. They were seated next to each other in the cafeteria while she threw food into his mouth, trying her hardest to trip him up. She swore the guy couldn't go five minutes without making a fool of himself.

She picked up a rib bone and chucked it at his chest, causing him to flinch.

"Hey!" he chuckled. "Let's not go down that road again. I don't know how the Saiyans feel about food fights."

Bulla stuck out her tongue, gasping in surprise when he stole another rib from her plate. "So what's it been like for you out here?" she asked, making sure to pay closer attention to her dinner. "Living it up with these nutjobs."

"It took a bit of getting used to," he nodded slowly, drifting off as he placed another morsel in his mouth. "But they're not so bad." He turned to look at her, his warm smile sending a ripple of shivers all through her. "What about you? I bet you whipped them all into shape pretty quickly."

She let out another hard laugh before shoving his shoulder. "Oh shush, you. I'm not that much of a royal dictator…" Bulla narrowed her eyes. "Am I?" When he turned away in exaggeration, she shoved him again. "What did you three end up talking about when you walked off earlier?"

"Nothing," Goten shrugged, dipping the end of his sausage in some mashed up root vegetable. "Who's that girl that keeps looking over to us?"

She followed his gaze to the serving station, immediately waving her young friend over. "Fern, hey!" she beamed. "Have you met Goten? He's one of the guys I was travelling with."

"Hi," the teen greeted sweetly once she reached them, extending her hand. "I'm Fern."

Goten cocked his head at the gesture, giving Bulla a look while he cautiously returned Fern's handshake. "Goten," he smiled his genial Son smile. "Nice to meet you."

"I taught her how earthlings greet each other," Bulla explained, dazzled by the exchange.  _So weird having these two meet._ "She's my new BFF."

"You look a lot like General Turles," the younger Saiyan stated while she cast a brief glance to the heiress. "But... nicer."

Bulla let out a knowing giggle when she realised what can of worms she'd just opened.  _School-girl crush commencing in three, two, one…_  "It's not hard to be nicer than Turles, though, is it?" she jested.

"He's nice to you," Fern offered, taking a seat opposite the duo and leaning her chin into her palm.

Goten gave Bulla another look, causing her to snort. "Long story." She moved some mash around in front of her.

"Uh-huh," he smirked, folding his arms as he straightened. "Let's hear it."

"It's not that interesting." She saw him nod to a female soldier she'd never seen before and immediately found herself wondering if she was the only Earthling to end up fraternising with the other side.

"Can you give me a second?" He put up his finger, attention still distracted by the other Saiyan. Both girls' eyes trailed after him when he stood up with one of his plates and stepped over to the mysterious woman. Bulla couldn't help but scrutinise her silently as Goten approached.  _Long, lean, nice definition._ The heiress cocked her head.  _Great ass. Ugh._ She turned away, but didn't have the will to do it for long. Soon enough, she was glancing at the duo out of the corner of her eye, spying a tail teasing at Goten's face while he grinned back at her and offered his entire dish.

Bulla tried to suppress a gasp at the sight, but despite herself, her jaw fell open anyway.  _Those are some serious 'fuck me' eyes,_ she noted as she continued to watch the flirty exchange. The heiress actually did gasp when she saw Goten bite at the tip of her tail, reciprocating her taunting. When she heard gaudy laughter erupt from the attractive Saiyan, Bulla twisted around completely, placing her hand on the side of her face to block her own view.

"Sorry about that," Goten announced jovially when he rejoined them at their bench, sans plate. "You were in the middle of telling me about my long lost twin?"

"Uhm. Yeah," Bulla began, shaking off her unease. "There were some  _distasteful_ rumours that circulated for a while _._ If you hear anything along those lines, don't believe them for a second," she leaned in to add quietly. "He and I have since come to an understanding… I think."

"He totally likes you," Fern added her two cents very matter-of-factly.

"No," Bulla chuckled as she shook her head. "He doesn't. Trust me."

"Well that's not what I heard." The younger girl interlocked her fingers on the table. "On Soul-" She stopped talking when Bulla opened her eyes, wide, silently begging her to zip it. Fern seemed to catch the hint.

_Oh my God, Soul,_ Bulla cringed, having almost succeeded in burying that memory.

"What's Soul?" Goten enquired, mouth full of food while he looked between the two girls. "And what happened with it?"

_Let's see._ Bulla began her mental list.  _I got propositioned by pretty much everyone, tried to seduce the one guy who didn't make a move on me, failed, and then ended up sleeping with your uncle even though I had my perfect chance walk away from that entire mess,_ she gulped.  _Turles was right. I think I really did leave that place with one less soul._

"Nothing," she eventually answered, keeping her gaze firmly on her own tray. "It was all lies." She waved to Fern when she signalled that she had to get back to work.

Goten nodded, a look of amusement still present. "I guess it doesn't matter where Bulla Briefs goes, the rumour mill will always go nuts about who you're hooking up with."

"I know, right?" she mumbled, warmth rising through her when she chanced lifting her eyes only to be met with soulful brown ones. Bulla heard a loud thump in her ears from the single heavy beat her heart just took. "Heard anything about Trunks?" she asked hopefully, subtly swerving the trajectory of the conversation before it headed into dangerous territory.

"No, sorry." He offered her a look of genuine remorse - an expression she hadn't encountered in over a month. "I had no idea I wasn't alone out here. Whenever I asked them about either of you they just avoided the question or gave some vague answer. But Bardock told me I'd get to go back to Advent once we reached their base so I eventually stopped asking questions."

"They did the same to me," Bulla muttered, ire rising as thoughts drifted to the Kaiser. "I guess it's safe to assume he's out there somewhere though. I doubt they'd only take two of us."

"He'll be okay, Bulla," he offered softly when her expression subtly sank. "The guy is a master tactician. Whatever he can't fight his way out of, he'll just use that pretty head of his instead." He shuffled closer along the seat and reached an arm around her, the concern in his face prompting the heiress to bear an involuntary smile.

"You're right, that's not-" she cut herself off.  _That's not the part that bothers me._  "Obviously they figured out your identity at some point." She poked him in the leg, distracting herself from thoughts she wasn't ready to face just yet. "How'd you let the cat out of the bag?"

"Uh…" He dropped his hand as a sheepish smile appeared on his face. "I guess you could say I lost my temper at one point?"

"What?" Bulla giggled, biting into a piece of cut up sausage. "That doesn't sound like you at all."

He simply shrugged, glancing away to fork his leftover scraps.

"C'mon, Goten." She gave another playful shove. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing." His boyish smiled caused her stomach to somersault. "What about you? Do they know the truth?"

"It came out… eventually." She nodded slowly, placing her cutlery back into the table.

"Yeah?" he grinned, both dimples showing. "How'd you give the game away?"

Bulla shook her head. "I was fighting one of their Generals and maybe started firing up a Galick Gun?" she shuddered at her own reckless misstep.

This simply caused the older halfling to guffaw heartily, her embarrassment only growing. "Vegeta's daughter, everyone."

"Oh but get this." She lowered her head and dropped her voice. " _They thought that I had a kid with your dad!_ "

"What?!" His chuckling rapidly turned to choking and he brought a fist to his mouth to catch the sputtered food. "Obviously they didn't get the memo that you find us Sons gross," he teased, nudging her leg with his knee.

She might have laughed a bit too hard at that one.

* * *

"The first time I set foot in one of their communal showers…" Eyes wide, Goten shook his head, a pink tinge slowly blooming across his cheeks.

"I know, right?!" Bulla exclaimed, mouth gaping in revulsion. "And they just act like it's nothing." She scrunched her face at the reminder.

After their dinner, the two hybrids found themselves a spot in a quiet nook, both watching the vast expanse of space while they caught up on the past many weeks' experiences with Bulla possibly leaving out some minor details.

"I can't even imagine what it's been like for you," he chuckled, a teasing look in his eye. "You'd turn tail when I left the bathroom in a towel. Forget about seeing me naked."

Bulla almost choked at the thought. "Hey, give me some credit, Goten," she recovered with a coy giggle as she shifted onto her knees to gaze out of the floor to ceiling window behind them. "I loosened up eventually." She could feel her own cheeks warming when she realised how her words could be interpreted.  _Yeah, I got real loose, didn't I._ "Do you think he's behind us somewhere?" Bulla quickly added, staring through the glass while she clutched the sofa's spine.

"Could be," he shrugged, arm stretched out along the back of the couch while he kept his gaze on the heiress. Bulla sat back down and nestled into him, resting her head on his chest as she let out a weighty exhale.

"If I close my eyes, I can pretend we're back on our own ship, watching one of those dumb shows while we eat another Goten special." She smiled up at him. "Can't say I ever expected to miss that."

He barked a 'hah!', bringing his arm back and giving her shoulder a squeeze. "Good to see you haven't changed much."

"Please, like these brutes could ever change me," she scoffed, giving him a gentle elbow to the stomach.

"Brutes, huh?" he questioned, absently grazing his fingers along her arm. "You being you, I find it hard to believe that you haven't made at least a few friends on this thing, outside of that kid in the cafeteria."

She had to suppress the shiver that was threatening to rattle through her.

"I guess I know some better than others," she murmured vaguely.

"I just remembered," he added. "You were walking with my uncle and his two-I-C when we first ran into each other."

Bulla froze.

"Bardock was trying to warn me about them, saying how hard they are to please, and here you are traipsing around with those two like it's no big deal." He poked her in the side, teasing smile returning. "Friends in high places?"

She forced a giggle, silently sinking deeper into her cringe. "I don't know if I'd call those guys friends..." she mumbled, glancing away.

In the distance, she could see Goku's iconic hairstyle approaching, but sensed it wasn't the surly General she spent so much time antagonising. A green cape flapped out behind him as he strode forward, and Bulla was temporarily hypnotised by the sight.

"You haven't really had a chance to meet my grandfather properly yet, have you?" Goten's voice interrupted her gawking and she joined him when he pushed himself up from the couch.

"Bardock, come here for a sec," he called over. "Let me introduce you two."

He did as his grandson requested, coming to a stop once he reached them.

"Nice to finally meet you Bardock," the heiress greeted genially, silently gushing at the sheer unbelievability of her current situation. "I'm Bulla." Here she was, staring into the eyes of the father of the earth's most beloved saviour, and seeing Goku all over the man's face.

"The prince's daughter?" Bardock confirmed, clearly taking her features in with great care. His doubt seemed especially pronounced when he locked onto her hair.

"The one and only," Bulla smiled, clasping her hands in front of her.

"I didn't realise you already knew about Vegeta before," Goten spoke up, scratching his scalp with his fingertips. "So I guess you know that she's a hybrid too. Like me. Her mother's an earthling, hence the…" He gestured between her equally impossible aqua-toned orbs and locks.

"Indeed," he nodded reservedly, still regarding her with some level of caution. "My son - Raditz," Bardock quickly clarified, probably realising he'd actually need to make the distinction when dealing with the two half-Saiyans. "Mentioned you more than once, but I see he left out a rather significant detail."

"What was that?" Her smile faltered while she looked to Goten, unthinkingly seeking reassurance that she hadn't already unknowingly said or done something to offend the older man.

Bardock simply threw his own glance to the dark-haired halfling, which Goten returned with a hint of scepticism.

"I've heard so many stories about you," Bulla interjected, trying to keep the conversation afloat, lest it devolve into a series of silent looks going in various directions. "It's a bit of a rush seeing you in person. Especially that uncanny family resemblance." She wrapped her arm around Goten's back and grinned up at him. "I can see where the rest of the family gets their good looks from."

"Charming," he smirked as he crossed his arms. "I can't imagine you got that from your father's side." Bulla couldn't help but giggle like a giddy school-girl. "In fact, nothing about seems remotely Saiyan."

"Just you wait," Goten laughed, interrupting her budding frown and clapping his grandfather on the shoulder. "You'll eat your words soon enough."

"You fight?" Bardock questioned.

"Raditz didn't tell you?" Bulla raised a playful eyebrow. "I think he'd agree that I know how to throw a punch," she added with a prideful Vegeta smirk.

"I'm beginning to think Raditz didn't tell me nearly enough about you," he responded, watching her in amusement.

"He doesn't seem like the talkative type," Goten put forward.

"He's not," Bardock and Bulla spoke simultaneously, causing the two to exchange a glance, the former's own smirk only growing.

"I have a few things to deal with," the older Saiyan added, twisting around and looking down the hallway.

"Want a hand?" The dark-haired halfling took a step to join him.

"No need," he responded absently, turning back around, eyes briefly falling to Bulla once more. "You may as well acquaint yourself with the others." He offered both hybrids a curt nod before striding off.

"I can't believe I just had a conversation with Goku's dad," Bulla proclaimed, feeling decidedly starstruck. "Like... that dude's sperm totally saved the universe. A bunch of times."

Goten burst into laughter and ruffled her hair before draping his arm over her shoulder and steering the duo back towards their seats. "Nice, Bulla. That's exactly the sort of thing I want to think about when I look at that guy."

Bulla slumped back into the sofa, a weight she didn't even realise she had well off her shoulders as she sank into the cushions and let out a contented breath. He plopped down next to her, rolling his head along the spine to meet her gaze.

They watched each other in silence for a few moments, soft smiles on both of their faces.

" _I'm so happy to see you again,"_ she whispered, reaching for his hand and tracing her fingertips over the dips and ridges. He brought the other up to her face, lightly cupping her cheek, her pulse to rising steadily.  _This must be what heaven feels like._

Bulla's head shot up suddenly when she felt two powerful ki's approaching, spotting the more familiar members of her ship. Raditz simply strolled by, air impassive as ever while Turles spared both hybrids a brief glance.

"Those guys are intense," she vaguely heard Goten speak, though her mind was already drifting. "I don't think they like me," he added with a chuckle.

Bulla was still too caught up in her own head to react to his words.

"... Bulla?"

"Huh?" She looked back at the dark-haired demi-Saiyan, snapping herself back to attention

"Everything okay? I kind of lost you there for a minute."

"Yeah I…" she stammered, feeling her chest tighten as she watched after the Kaiser and his favourite General. "I should probably go."

"It's been a hell of a day," he yawned, stretching his arms out. "Hopefully the showers aren't too busy. Back to the dorms for us."

Bulla attempted a weak smile, feeling nothing but guilt wash over her as she realised the web of deception she was inadvertently constructing.

"I can walk you back," he offered.

"NO," she blurted before she had a chance to catch herself, wincing when she saw his expression drop ever so slightly. "Sorry, I mean." She pressed her palm to his hand, a lump beginning to form in her throat. "Thank you, but you don't need to do that." Bulla looked up, barbed wire wrapping around her heart. "I'll see you tomorrow, Goten."

She tore herself away, feeling a ringing in her ears as she swallowed and walked briskly down the hallway towards the Kaiser's suite.  _I need to gather my shit and get out of there._  She closed her eyes.  _I can't lie to him like this._

She could sense that Goten hadn't yet gone from his spot, and it left her even more unsettled, the sensation only intensifying when she found the pair of aloof Saiyans outside Raditz' door.

"Hey," Bulla muttered, making a concerted effort to keep her head down. Both looked at her curiously, interrupting their conversation. "Don't mind me," she mumbled, slipping past the taller of the two men and stepping towards the threshold. Raditz gripped her arm, intercepting her attempt at a seamless exit. She gazed up at him reluctantly, vaguely registering the look of uncertainty slowly deepening on features. Struggling to meet his gaze, she glanced away, unintentionally locking eyes with his General.

"You're rather quiet," Turles commented, watching her in suspicion.

Her attention instinctively shot to the end of the hallway when she sensed Goten's energy on the move, causing both Saiyans to do the same. All three watched as he crossed to the adjacent hallway, turning his head casually, likely sensing the heiress at the same time. He was too far away for Bulla to read his expression, but her heart sank all the same.

_He's too decent to suspect anything,_ she told herself quietly. And it was probably true, but that didn't leave her feeling any better about herself or the situation.

"Can you let me go," she murmured once he was out of sight.

Raditz nodded silently to his comrade and Bulla soon heard the sound of Turles steps heading down the passageway. The Kaiser opened his suite door, leading both inside and releasing his hold, leaving Bulla to stand idly in the middle of the room, lightness and elation from earlier gradually bleeding out.

"We'll be approaching Crest within the week," he stated while he unclipped his cape at the closet door.

Bulla nodded, enough wherewithal to catch what was going unsaid: Their little tryst would be coming to an end soon.

She let out a breath.

While it was certainly worth acknowledging, and she would ordinarily have been more surprised at his mention of it, she was still preoccupied with thoughts of Goku's youngest.

Bulla jumped when she felt something touching her face but soon realised it was Raditz, grazing her cheek with the back of his finger, his own face centimetres away. His hand slipped to the back of her neck and gripped the hair at her nape as he met their lips and edged her towards the wall. Unthinkingly, Bulla turned her head, face crumpling.

He hesitated before kissing her again, sandwiching the heiress between himself and the room's perimeter. She returned it briefly before pressing her palms to his chest plate and twisted away once more.

"What's wrong?" he breathed into her neck, sending a cascade of shivers down her spine before gently sucking at the exposed flesh, squeezing her waist with both hands.

" _Why didn't you tell me?_ " she eventually uttered, causing him to pause. "Why didn't you tell me that he was out here too. I asked you so many times and you said nothing."

He let out an exasperated exhale, leaning his forehead into the dip at her collarbone. "What difference would it have made?"

_Everything,_  she frowned.  _All the difference in the world._

_... or would it?_

"Both of us have kept our cards close for our own reasons," he rumbled. " _Princess_."

Bulla audibly choked. It felt like someone had just stabbed her right in the chest. Was it fair to feel so betrayed when neither of them had sworn any amount of loyalty or openness to the other? She suspected her expression gave her away, because she soon heard the Kaiser's voice hit her ears.

"The three of you had your own alliance," he offered quietly, causing her to stiffen. "It was best to separate and observe each of you individually, lest you consort amongst yourselves and stir up havoc."

Having long learned to avoid expecting complete explanations from the taciturn Saiyan, she couldn't help but glance down at him for the uncharacteristic reveal. "You couldn't even tell me that they were amongst your soldiers, just like I was?"

"The strength of the wolf is the pack," he added calmly. "All three of you grew more compliant when you thought you were alone."

Bulla leaned the back of her head to the wall, a maelstrom of emotions swirling through her.  _Divide and conquer,_ she swallowed.  _They really are creatures of war, through and through._ Bright eyes were a shade duller and gradually beginning fill.

" _Why was I put on this ship?_ " she frowned, bringing her hands to her face. Nausea rose through her as more insight gathered to remind her just how little she knew about her own abduction and the Saiyan military's intentions with her. "Is this what you planned from the beginning? To get me in your bed?"

Raditz lifted his head at the accusation. "No," he stated seriously. Bulla continued to embrace herself, unsure how much to believe anything he said anymore. "Auber reports to Turles, not me," Raditz added. "When he found the three of you on Advent, he called it in and Turles went to inspect you all himself."

Bulla squeezed her lids shut, sending a single streak down her left cheek. " _I can't do this anymore."_

He watched her closely before brushing his thumb along the bone under her eye, inspecting the digit and rubbing his fingers together. "Tears." She caught the faintest of frowns twitch onto his features for a fleeting second.

Raditz brought his right hand up to her face, cupping her cheek and grazing his now damp thumb across her even damper skin. She couldn't stop herself from leaning into it with closed eyes.

When she reopened them, she found that softness leaking through once more. It was faint, but not ingenuine - a fraction of the warmth that would have come from one of his earth-based relatives, but it weakened her resolve all the same.

"Who is he?" Raditz spoke when she didn't respond.

She didn't need to ask who he was referring to, but the fact that he was asking at all gave her an instant sting of whiplash.

"You already know who he is," she answered quietly, glancing to the floor. "Goku's son. Your nephew."

"No." He glided his hand down, pressing his thumb to her chin. "Who is he  _to you._ "

Bulla winced, lids squeezing shut once more. "A friend," she whispered, attempting to mask the unevenness in her voice.

"A friend," he repeated back to her.

"A good friend." Bulla quickly brought her fingers to her cheeks to catch the increased torrent that was beginning to spill.

He lowered his head, grazing the tip of his nose over flushed, crimson flesh. She felt his breath on her neck once more and it sent a wave of heat descending through her.

"Tell me," he began throatily. "Is it customary on earth to fuck your friends?"

Bulla gasped, glassy aquamarine orbs drilling into him at the tactless comment. "What the hell kind of question is that?" she spat, shoving him off her and marching for his closet to start collecting her stash.

He simply shrugged, reminding her yet again that no amount of shared Saiyan blood could bridge the impossible gap between their two vastly different cultures. "Just a question."

"Not that it's  **any of your business,** " the heiress fumed as she bundled a few pairs of uniforms in her arms. "But we've never slept together."

A smirked appeared while he stepped over to her, clearly unconvinced.

"I'm telling the truth," she asserted, continuing to stare daggers at him. "But I  _have_  known Goten all my life, and we've been through a hell of a lot together." Bulla took a deep breath. "Especially since we left earth."

He caught a clump of aquamarine locks between his fingers and slid down the silky strands. "Is that your long-winded way of saying that there's nothing carnal between the two of you?"

She hoped he didn't catch her hesitation before she uttered, "Yes."

"Then why are you so adamant about leaving this room?" he asked, causing her to pause as she dropped her gaze to the ground.

"He can't know about us," she breathed. "Ever."

After a few moments, he folded his arms, all warmth from before gradually dissolving. "You're ashamed," he stated calmly. When she refrained from responding, he shook his head and let out dry chuckle. "Even after all these years." He padded closer, promoting her to look up and take in his frigid expression. "All I've accomplished. Only someone from that bastard's line would still see me as unworthy."

Bulla recoiled, aquamarine brows drawing together as she dropped her pile. She was on the verge of verbal retaliation when she caught a fleeting twitch at his eye.  _Have I actually… hurt him?_

"I couldn't fathom how someone like you could possibly bear Vegeta's blood," he added coolly. "But it's certainly there."

Her stomach twisted. "That's not it, Raditz," Bulla choked, pressing her palm to his chest. " _I don't think you're-_ "

_It's too late._ She stared into the bottomless void that camouflaged itself as the Kaiser's eyes.  _I'm already in too deep._ Perhaps it was clouded by her own current fragility, but she dared wonder if the look she was picking up behind his faint scowl indeed pleaded,  _Prove it._

Bringing the other hand up to his face, she traced her fingers over the protruding bones.  _What are you holding out for, Bulla?_ She could feel her eyes misting up again.  _Goten was never yours to lose in the first place._

"I saw him kiss you," he voiced huskily, furthering her insight into his quiet trepidation.

Bulla continued to gaze up at him, orbs still shaky, but new conviction slowly forcing its way through. " _Not the way you do_."

The end of his mouth curled upwards as he pulled her to him, tail snaking around her waist.

When Raditz kissed her a third time, she reminded herself that she didn't have a soul left to save anyway.


	20. Siren

" _What!" Turles barked into his scouter, jaw clenched, barely reining in his annoyance._

" _General, you need to come to my location right away." The voice of his underling rattled through his ear, immediately setting his temper on edge._

" _Are you forgetting which one of us is the Captain in this scenario?" he countered, eyes absently falling to the teenage girl who was in the middle of clearing his table, wiping up scattered bits of food. She kept looking up at him while she worked, cheeks blooming pinker each time she lifted her head. He didn't like it._

" _You're going to want to see this," Auber told him. It sounded like there was some commotion, judging by the flurry of extra voices coming through his earpiece._

_Turles tapped a few buttons at his temple, attempting to pinpoint the Captain's coordinates. "You're still in the city?" he chided, dropping his fist to the bench and causing the girl to jump. "Why aren't you on Bardock's ship already? We're leaving in half an hour you incompetent-"_

" _I know, General." Not usually one to fold this easily, Auber was clearly attempting to placate him. "Just get here and you'll understand."_

" _I swear, if you're wasting my time." Turles ground his teeth. Having heard enough of that halfwit's voice, he cut off communication and pushed up from his seat. Storming out of the cafeteria, he headed for the main exit, slammed his fist against the release and watched as the ramp slowly lowered._

_Once he was outside, he took to the air and headed for the city, scouter beeping once more._

" _What are you doing?" Raditz' voice came through this time._

" _Cleaning up another of one Auber's messes, I suspect," he responded churlishly. "Don't worry, I won't hold up our schedule."_

_The line went dead._

_Following the prompts of his scouter, Turles soon came upon his Captain in a clearing bordering the central district, along with the rest of the imbecile's squad. As he eased into his descent, Turles noted that something was indeed off. The soldiers were all clustered in a circle of sorts, though there were some further away, tending to injuries._

" _What the hell happened?" he immediately berated. "This planet is filled with hedonistic weaklings." He walked through the outer ring, reaching the centre and spying three individuals spread out on the ground, faces pointing to the evening sky. Two men, one woman. "Auber," he warned._

" _I spotted them while we were heading back-" he began his explanation._

" _Don't tell me a story," Turles cut in impatiently. "Tell me why I'm here, and what these three have to do with it." He nodded to the unconscious trio._

" _I believe we've found more unregistered Saiyans," the Captain tried again._

" _Pah." Turles spun around. "These worms?" He was on the verge of taking off, intending on returning to Raditz' ship, when Auber exclaimed,_

" _Wait! I'm serious. Look at my men." He threw out his arm in demonstration. "Three of them, nine of us. And they barely even broke a sweat."_

_Turles hesitated, half-twisting back to take another gander. His eyes glossed over their harmless bodies, stopping at the only one amongst them who could possibly trick someone into believing he was a member of the long-feared race. "What happened to him?" He nodded to the one in the middle. "Why's there so much blood on his clothes compared to the others?"_

" _Most of it isn't his," Auber informed. "After I released the gas, he fought through it. Still managed to do some damage. Kept trying to get to this one." He nudged the girl's leg with the sole of his boot._

_Turles got down on his haunches, inspecting the troublemaker's features more closely. "He looks like-"_

" _I know," Auber rasped. "They're Saiyan, I'm sure of it."_

" _Him, maybe." Turles rolled the bloodied face of the dark-haired figure back and forth along the dirt. "But not the other two."_

" _I wouldn't be so sure," Auber argued. "Their colour is off, but the rest of them isn't." He stepped over to the girl. "Give her a sniff. She smells like ours."_

_Turles, admittedly intrigued, got down on his knees and lowered his nose to her neck. After a careful inhale, a shiver rumbled through him which he quickly squashed down. "She smells like you," he muttered, pushing into his hands._

" _Should we contact the Kaiser?" his subordinate suggested._

" _No, don't waste his time with this," Turles snarled. "Leave them here. They're nothing - your men are just out of condition. More drills, less fucking around."_

" _You didn't see these three fight, General," Auber spoke quietly, turning his back on the downed figures. "They're no amateurs."_

_Turles' gaze fell to the girl, an eyebrow raising at the concept. "That beanpole?" His scouter buzzed for the third time. "Yes?"_

" _Is everything taken care of? You have ten minutes," Raditz informed, voice absent._

" _It seems we have a bit of a situation on our hands," Turles exhaled, reluctant to involve his superior. "Auber's found a few potential wayward souls." He hesitated before adding, "He claims they're powerful."_

" _Bring them."_

" _I'm not convinced about two of them," Turles interjected._

" _Tails?"_

_He walked over to the lavender-haired member, rolling him over with his boot. "No."_

" _How many in total?"_

" _Three."_

" _We don't have time to deliberate. Bring them," Raditz repeated. "We'll decide their fates later if Auber's incorrect."_

_This time, Turles was the one to kill the communication. With a sigh, he wandered back to the Captain, who was still waiting for confirmation on their next move. "Usual protocol," he commanded._

" _Who goes where?" Auber questioned, eyeing their unconscious forms._

 _After a moment of consideration, Turles answered. "I'll take the girl." He stepped over to her, pausing briefly to take in her appearance._ If I'm going to be stuck with these runts, I may as well pick the one who's easy on the eyes. _Reaching under her back and knees, he scooped her off the dirt._ This one, a fighter? _he almost snorted. Her head lolled back, causing her hair to fall and expose her neck. Immediately, his gaze fell on a faint bruise under her jaw, eyes narrowing. "Which one of you fuckers did this?" he called out, feeling his temper rise once again. "Auber!"_

_The aforementioned Captain dropped the body he was in the process of lifting, quickly joining his superior. "Did what?" Readjusting his hold, Turles presented the area of interest to his underling. Auber's brows drew together in confusion as he thumbed the delicate skin. "I don't think that's from fight-"_

" _I know what it's from, you moron," the General interrupted._

" _I watched the whole thing." Auber looked up, meeting his gaze. "None of us did that. Perhaps it was already there."_

How convenient.

_Having had enough of the unexpected diversion, Turles levitated off the ground, flattening the grass beneath his boots, and shot off towards the flagship._

There's no way this nymph is Saiyan, _he grumbled to himself, spitting out the occasional aquamarine strand that persisted in flying all across his face._ I should have made more of an argument against this with Raditz.

_Once he reached the ramp, he marched up with the girl in his arms, ignoring the inquisitive stares of lower-ranked soldiers as he passed them._

Dammit, Auber, _he groaned when it dawned on him what this meant for him. Dormitories were out of the question since they'd be all over her in a heartbeat, and he didn't know how much to believe the Captain's assertion that she was capable of defending herself. He already knew what the Kaiser would say:_ Your men found her, so she's your responsibility until we're comfortable that she can safely integrate with the others.

_Taking the route to his suite, he twisted around when he heard hushed chatter, spotting the wide-eyed face of the girl from the cafeteria, amongst a handful of others, watching him discreetly from around the corner. All swiftly scattered like mice when they realised they'd been caught. With a grunt, he continued to his door._

_Once inside, he flicked on his lamp and lowered her to his bed, catching another whiff of her scent in the process. Instantly, another shiver coursed through, setting all his fine hairs on end, pupils dilating._

Can't be, _he hesitated._ _His eyes traced over her silky hair, spread out so generously across his pillow it was spilling down the side of his bed. Unthinkingly, he reached out a hand to touch it, vaguely curious if it felt as soft as it looked._

" _Mrnks," she mumbled, giving him pause, black orbs falling to her contorting face. "Mten."_

Mountain?

_He instead decided to thumb the bruise at her neck. It was fresh but already healing, definitely from the past twenty-four hours at least. If it wasn't one of Auber's untamed soldiers who did this, then..._

Pretty girl's been having some fun, _he smirked._ Lucky guy. _He tried to picture the two men she was found with - one was just as pretty as she was._ Looked like a bit of a sissy, but perhaps that's her thing. _Then he remembered Auber's comment about the one in the middle - the most likely Saiyan of the bunch. He'd struggled through the effects of the vapour to defend her._

Interesting, _he considered._ I don't blame him. That's certainly a face you'd kill for.

_Thoughts drifted to myths he recalled hearing as a young boy, still wet behind the ears and ever-eager for gory battle. Tales of faraway women whose beauty launched and sealed the fates of a thousand spaceships._

Watch out for this one, _he smiled to himself, casting her one last look before turning to leave._

_Once back in the passage, his hand hovered over his door handle and he glanced both directions before deciding to lock it. It was a token more than anything; The soldiers knew his suite was entirely off-limits, but he wouldn't put it past a few of them to have curiosity that exceeded their own sense._

* * *

Eyes closed.

Warm lips, rough hands.

Skin to skin.

_Is there anything better than this?_

Bulla giggled as a sharp nose drew soft circles on her neck, and laughed out loud when hard fingers dug into her sides, causing her to squirm involuntarily. She couldn't escape his clutches all that easily though. He was no human male like she was so used to - always having to dampen her own power so as not to bruise the fragile ego of her latest beau or reveal her otherworldly strength.

 _He was right_ , she sighed, arching her back off the cool ground and raking her fingers through thick black hair before dragging it down firm, corded muscle. _Who better for a Saiyan than another Saiyan?_

He lifted his head to gaze at the bubbling heiress.

"Tell me, princess. Are you mine?"

Bulla frowned at the question. His voice sounded different. Strange even.

Her lids floated open and she drew in a sharp breath, quickly shuffling backwards when she realised the man on top of her was not who she expected.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

She blinked - _It's okay, it's_ _Raditz -_ and let out an exhale.

He leaned over her, brows drawing together in concern. Desperately, she pulled his face down and met their mouths.

When he pulled away, it happened again. He was different.

"Is everything okay?" It was Goten who hovered over her this time, replacing the figure of his uncle. _Sweet, sweet Goten._

"What's going on?" Bulla panicked, shimmying away once more. "What's happening right now?" She twisted her head both directions to look behind her, but all she saw was the empty clearing.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Turles' face was now front and centre as he slid his fingers through her hair, watching the strands fall to the damp grass beneath her. "Besides, you didn't answer the question." His gaze drifted back to her own, bottomless but dangerously magnetic. "Are-"

 _Goten._ "You."

 _Raditz._ "Mine?"

* * *

Bulla gasped as she shot up from the mattress, palm to her chest, breathing ragged. Her face was drenched and her heart was galloping.

In a split second, Raditz was up too, energy spiking as he held his arm out across her and readied a ki ball in his left hand. "What's wrong?"

A shiver rattled through her. _Kami, he sounds just like he did in the dream._

"Nothing, sorry." She brought her hands to her face. "Just a nightmare."

His ki fizzled as he turned his head to gaze at her, watching while her mind raced.

 _What the hell was that?_ She squeezed her lids, attempting to get her breathing back under control. Bulla glanced at the Kaiser warily and he reached for her arm, pulling it over his chest as he returned to his back.

She nestled into him, the warmth emitted from his body soothing her frayed nerves while she closed her eyes and let out a long breath.

Bulla rolled her head, taking in the rare peaceful face of the Saiyan's honoured leader. _One more sleep, then it's all over._ She recalled the look on his face during their argument the night before, _Did I bruise his ego, or his heart?_ and let out a sigh as she acknowledged yet another failed attempt at cutting their connection.

The question the three men asked in her dream played on repeat. _I'm no one's,_ she told herself _,_ subconsciously seeking each one's energy signatures. Both of the others were in their rooms, presumably asleep and blissfully unaware of their role in her subconscious turmoil.

Quietly, she lifted herself up and slid out from under the sheet.

"Where are you going?" she heard a low voice rumble.

"Bathroom," she told him quietly.

She splashed her face before leaning her hands either side of the basin, staring at her reflection. The whites of her eyes were dull and bloodshot.

_But who do I really want?_

_And who even really wants me?_

* * *

Water beat down on the heiress' face, hundreds of fiery bullets attempting to wash away her ever-growing internal conflict. She didn't even register the bathroom door opening, or the second presence outside the shower cubicle until she felt someone behind her, hard chest pressing into her back.

"You're up early," he commented, reaching for the bar of soap behind her.

"Couldn't fall back asleep," she exhaled, lowering her lids while she allowed her hair to soak.

He didn't respond while he scrubbed himself down, though Bulla reopened her eyes and watched him quietly. He caught her observing him and displayed a smirk before covering the top half of her face with his palm, causing her to giggle softly while she pulled his arm away.

"Have you never seen a naked male before?" he teased.

"I wasn't looking at your body," she countered coyly, massaging her scalp and silently wishing for the thousandth time that she had her assortment of carefully selected shampoos and conditioners. "I was looking at your face."

He reared slightly, evidently taken aback. "Strange creatures," he murmured to himself.

"What are you talking about?" she smiled, stepping out of the shower once she rung out her locks and reached for her towel. "Don't pretend you don't look at _my_ face occasionally. I've seen you do it enough times."

"Yours happens to be pleasant to look at," he stated simply, rinsing himself off while she stared back at him, gobsmacked.

_Did he really just say that?_

She shook her head in disbelief while she entered the main suite, towel wrapped around her hair while she kept her ki raised just enough to zap the last of the droplets on her skin. _I think that's the first time he's ever commented on how I look,_ she mused absently.

He joined her soon after, doing the same and utilising his energy to dry himself off. After gliding her uniform on and combing through the knots in her hair, Bulla padded to the door. Once she'd gently opened it and stepped through, she gazed into the room from the other side of the threshold, taking in the small details she'd grown so familiar with over the past five weeks until her eyes finally fell to the Kaiser. He had his back to her while he pulled on his armour and the heiress took a moment to cast him one last wavering look before clicking the door closed and twisting on the heel of her boot. With an exhale, she proceeded down the hallway.

* * *

"What's going on?" Fern's adorable face scrunched as she brought a tightened fist to her eye and gave it a rub.

"Shhh," Bulla whispered, lifting the girl's blanket and discreetly slipping under the covers. "It's just for a couple of nights. Go back to sleep."

With a groan, the teenager flipped around, dozing off once again. Bulla relaxed on her back, watching the ceiling while she waited for sleep to claim her. It was a tight squeeze, but Fern was small and it kind of reminded her of a sweeter time - slumber parties with her equally innocent friends. Back then, she couldn't even imagine being at the centre of such a mess.

Through closed eyes, she recalled her dream, wondering just what load she was putting her subconscious under while she denied these thoughts any attention during her waking moments.

* * *

_Turles stormed down the passage towards his superior's suite, feeling especially cranky after such a poor night's sleep. He found the man he was looking for outside his room door, speaking with some low-level grunt. "Leave," he commanded once he reached them, not even sparing the soldier a glance while he kept his eyes on the Kaiser._

_Raditz simply pivoted to face the surly General, expression impassive while he waited to hear what he wanted._

" _She in there?" Turles nodded to the door._

" _She is."_

" _Learned anything more about her?"_

" _Not particularly," Raditz answered, unfazed. "Except for a few strange behaviours and a fiery temper. She is familiar with Frieza and his old organisation, however."_

" _Is she now?" Turles readjusted his footing. "That's a bit before her time, wouldn't you say?"_

" _That's what I thought." The Kaiser's eyes tensed briefly._

" _What are we doing, Raditz?" Turles dropped his voice and took a step closer. "Bringing an outsider onto our ship like this."_

" _Be patient, Turles," he responded calmly. "I suspect there's more to this one than we realise. She's cautious and guarded for now, but things could get interesting."_

" _It's a waste of time and resources to have her around," the General argued, gritting his teeth. "She's not worthy of either."_

" _I wouldn't be so hasty to make that judgement," Raditz cautioned, mind clearly still active. "I've spent a night with her in my room and her scent is indeed Saiyan. She may well be one of us."_

" _Don't you think I would have picked that up myself?" he challenged, growing increasingly impatient. "Her scent is all over my bed." Turles clenched his jaw. "All you're smelling is the mix of shameless soldiers who had their paws on her back on Advent." Under his breath he added, "Would it kill Auber to instil some discipline in those cretins?"_

_Raditz smirked, eyeing him in amusement. "I couldn't help but notice your scent among them, General." Turles ignored the taunt. "Whoever she is, she's harmless against us," Raditz continued. "The fact that she could hold her own against multiple assailants is too intriguing to ignore. And if she grows hostile," he concluded matter-of-factly. "You well know I can neutralise her myself."_

_With an exhale Turles loosened his arms. "Fine." He looked to the suite door, hearing her shuffling around on the other side. "You're the Kaiser. It's your call."_

_They exchanged a nod and dispersed._

_As Turles considered Raditz' words, a nagging part of him wondered just how clearly the Kaiser was thinking right now. It didn't escape his notice how uncharacteristically accommodating he was being, or how curiously he observed her in the cafeteria the day before when her head was turned._

She was jumpy as a bird, _Turles recalled, her large bright eyes constantly darting around the room._ I don't trust her, _he grumbled to himself._ And if Raditz won't watch his back around her, I'll just have to do it for him.

* * *

"Knock knock," Bulla announced herself in the doorway of one of the second fleet's third-floor dormitories. It wasn't hard to pinpoint Goten's energy once she mosied on to Bardock's ship. He was like a lighthouse surrounded by a collection of matchstick flames. Out of instinct, she held her breath when she crossed the temporary bridge, but everything seemed to be in good working order. It gave her the immediate impression that this wasn't the first time the Saiyans had to conjure up quick and dirty solutions for their day-to-day operations.

"Well look who it is." A sharp-featured woman with pointy fangs crossed her arms and leaned her shoulder into the door. "Our long lost princess."

Bulla offered a careful smile. "Please, call me Bulla."

The woman was already distracted, reaching out for her hanging locks while the heiress edged away with a frown. "They weren't kidding about the blue..." the soldier murmured.

"Bulla, hey!" Goten's warm voice registered, causing the younger hybrid to perk up. "What's up?" He pulled his armour over his head, slipping one arm through after the other.

"I was wondering if you wanted to grab some breakfast?" she offered, eyes taking in the rest of his shared suite. There were at least half a dozen others milling around, some casting her discerning looks, others completely uninterested.

"Sure!" he grinned, joining her in the doorway and glancing at the petite soldier who was still scrutinising the exotic earthling. "I see you've met Prin." Prin offered a playful nod, eyeing him as he exited. She kissed her fingertips and wiped them along his cheek, earning herself a chuckle from the halfling. "Let's get out of here." He draped his arm over Bulla's shoulder and ushered her towards the lift.

"You seem so comfortable with them," Bulla commented quietly, wondering if she'd inadvertently sold herself short by picking the more luxurious option all these weeks. _Face it, Bulla, you're a princess in every sense. You could never live like they do._

"Sure, they've become kind of like family," he answered easily. "I mean, I've done pretty much everything with them since I was assigned to their room."

 _Everything?_ Bulla pondered, perusing him out of the corner of her eye while he kept his gaze ahead.

"So where are we eating?" Goten interrupted her musings. "Your ship or mine?"

"You-"

"Actually, can we do yours?" he interrupted, turning his head to look at her. "I want to get to know my uncle as much as I can while I have the chance."

Bulla's chest clenched as she silently winced. "Uh, you sure?" she mumbled. "He's not that conversational."

"That's fine, neither is Bardock." He gave a casual shrug. "But I've warmed him up. He's actually pretty cool, I kind of wish I didn't have to say goodbye to him once we reached Crest."

 _Look at this guy,_ Bulla sighed. _He's used the opportunity to genuinely get to know our fellow Saiyans, while I've done nothing but bring more drama into my life._ Unthinkingly, she wiped her palm down her face. _I'm so fucking hopeless, it doesn't matter which planet I'm on._

Once they reached the main cafeteria, she immediately honed in on the three highest-ranked members of the two fleets sitting at her usual spot. Keeping her gaze averted, she grabbed a tray and followed Goten to the line.

After filling her plates, Fern waved Bulla closer. " _You don't believe me?"_ the teen whispered. " _He's totally watching you."_

"Who?" Bulla followed Fern's gaze and found Turles leaning back in his seat, arms folded while he indeed observed the heiress. He didn't even bother looking away when she caught him staring. "Fern, you need to stop with this." Bulla twisted back around. "I'm starting to have dreams about it."

"Dreams about what?" Goten asked, dragging his own tray along.

Aquamarine orbs widened at the teenager, only causing said teen to giggle into her hands. Bulla swiftly spun on her boot and absently followed after Goten while he made his way to the others. Her breath hitched for a moment, but she quietly reminded herself to just act natural.

She slotted in next to Bardock and, with a slow inhale, took in the members of her table: Opposite her, the Saiyan leader - serious and stoic while he spoke with his father. To his right, Son Goten, his newly discovered nephew, already listening intently to their discussion. On her left, Turles: the wild card. Despite their casual banter, she had to admit that she'd had one too many charged encounters with him over the course of her stay, and it seemed to be making its way into her subconscious. To her right, of course, the man indirectly responsible for most of the subsurface drama, since he was the one who bred two-thirds of the present players.

"If not him then who?" Turles spoke, causing her to jump.

"That's what I'd like to know." Raditz sat back, crossing his arms.

Bulla zoned back in enough to learn that she had no idea what they were talking about, but the look on Goten's face piqued her interest.

"Ground control says there hasn't been any suspicious activity for weeks," Bardock added, arms either side of his tray. "It could all be nothing."

Goten extended his hand across the table, grabbing one of her rashers, and she couldn't help but laugh at the action. _Is it even a real meal if I don't have this guy stealing from my plate?_

"If you're not hungry," Turles muttered under his breath, eyeing her breakfast. "Pass it here."

She pressed her palm to the side of his face and shoved, forcing him to turn away. "Back off, greedy guts," she warned, gesturing to his own plates. "You've still got a full tray in front of you."

"That kid gave you extra bacon." He reached behind her, sneaking around her right side to steal a prized strip while her attention was still fixed on his glare.

"Hey!" she cried once she realised what he was plotting and promptly gripped his gauntlet, thus kick-starting their first tussle of the day. "Maybe if you were nicer to her she'd give you freebies too, jerk."

While the two warred next to him, Bardock watched on. "Are they always like this?" he asked his son while the others continued eating.

"Every day," Raditz answered, unfazed.

"So has he been your Goten while I've been with Bardock?" Goten asked innocently, mouth still full.

Bulla choked, immediately losing concentration, along with her mini-battle as her eyes met with the General's.

"In more ways than one, I think," he answered for her, a smug smirk breaking on his surly expression while he brought the strip of bacon to his mouth in victory.

The heiress' cheeks inflated and, instinctively, she threw a punch. She was too mortified to think clearly, and Turles caught her fist all too easily, still laughing as he continued taunting her. _Oh my God, I'm going to kill this guy._

"It's not every day I see a woman keeping up with you two," Bardock commented, returning his attention to the Kaiser. "I imagine it's been far more colourful having her around."

That caught Bulla's attention and, slowly, she twisted around, too curious about Raditz' reaction to avoid looking at him any longer. He cast her a seemingly simple gaze, but she saw the electricity behind his dark stare when their eyes met and it set her insides on fire.

Movement in her peripheral vision caused her to falter. Goten had been looking at his uncle too, before carefully rolling his head to Bulla. She exchanged a glance with her fellow halfling and gulped. It was hard to gauge what he was thinking, but she could see the wheels beginning to turn.

"So, Bardock," she quickly interjected, hoping to snuff out any potential fires before they started. "Is there a misses ex-Kaiser back on Crest?"

"Why," Turles murmured under his breath. "Are you setting your sights on him now too? _Ungh."_ He doubled over when she elbowed him in the side and cast him a deadly glare. Thankfully, it seemed she was the only one who caught the jab, as the others simply looked on in confusion at her apparently random act of violence.

"Yes, actually," Bardock answered, much to her surprise.

"Whoa, really!" Bulla was instantly distracted by the concept. Admittedly, she was half expecting him to just ignore the question, like Raditz would most of the time, forget about actually affirming it. "What is she like? And what does she look like?"

All three pure-blooded Saiyans suddenly looked to Goten, causing him to pause while he continued helping himself to Bulla's plate. "Wah?" he managed to muffle out of his overflowing mouth.

Bulla was confused too, and her heart nearly stopped when she saw Raditz reach a meaty hand to the halfling's head, grabbing the back of it and clenching his fingers in his growing mane. "Like this."

"What?" she chuckled.

"Your hair." Bardock pointed to his grandson with his fork. "Is a lot like hers."

Bulla couldn't help but snort right into her hand, especially at the look of concern growing on Goten's face. "I look like an old woman?" he frowned. This kicked the heiress over the edge, and soon she burst into uncontrollable laughter.

Goten ran his fingers through the thick clump of strands self-consciously, disappointment evidently still present, and building.

"Do you guys think we could meet her before we leave?" she asked once she calmed down. "I know she's not even my grandmother, but I would love to meet the woman behind some of my favourite people in the world." Both Raditz and Goten cast her a curious look, to which she quickly added, "I was talking about Goku!" She folded her arms and turned away, attempting to hide her sheepishness. "And Pan. Obviously."

"So what are your thoughts once we get back to Crest?" Bardock directed towards his son.

_Okay, maybe they're not so different._

"I've already issued the command. Sentinels are at their limits," Raditz began. "We'll need to call ahead for our arrival to avoid friendly fire."

"Any word from Cinna?" Turles enquired, shoving his tray aside.

Bulla continued to observe the exchange, eyes darting each time someone new spoke.

"They're half a day's travel ahead of us," the Kaiser answered. Apparently he'd grown tired of talking, because he pressed his palms to the bench top and rose from his seat, already looking to the exit. "She's been issued her instructions."

Bulla cast a sceptical look to her fellow hybrid. _What are they talking about?_ He shrugged his shoulders, mind seemingly on the same track.

Once Raditz and Turles departed, only the old Kaiser and his grandson remained. Bulla couldn't figure out why, but she turned into an empty-headed idiot every time she was around the patriarch. He appeared unexpectedly patient for a Saiyan, though she couldn't help but feel still waters ran deep.

"Auber's sporting yet another black eye thanks to you," he commented, observing the heiress with a look of amusement.

"He had it coming." She lifted her nose. "I told him no one's allowed to touch me and he didn't listen."

Bardock tapped his finger on the table's hard surface, eyeing her for a moment before lifting himself up too. "Nappa was right." He displayed a faint smile. "You're definitely a spitfire."

Goten raised both eyebrows at her once his grandfather was gone. "Looks like you've made quite the name for yourself out here," he teased, dabbing his finger in the last of his crumbs and bringing it to his mouth.

"Not everything you hear about me is false, I guess," she grinned, flicking out her hair.

"Speaking of which." Goten rose too, grabbing everyone's empty trays and dumping them at a nearby counter.

"...What?" Bulla glanced up reluctantly, simultaneously hoping to avoid the conversation completely while also wanting to know exactly what she needed to prepare herself for if he was getting at what she thought he was.

The lines in his forehead creased as he looked to her in apprehension, "Forget it," and ran his fingertips over his scalp, reminding Bulla of a task she had quietly set for herself earlier.

She linked their arms, allowing herself to become distracted by her upcoming plans. "Any idea where I can find some scissors?"

* * *

_Hollers, cheers and heavy fists banging against solid wood filled the room as this vixen of a half-breed slinked along the table. Back arched, ass up, hips swaying._

What a view _, Turles smirked. He raised an eyebrow towards his Kaiser, absently wondering if he was equally amused by the show._

Guess not.

_Raditz' appeared decidedly unimpressed. He wasn't even watching the Princess. His eyes were on one of Caya's horn-dog soldiers. Turles glanced over too, seeing the young gun reaching out to, presumably, pull her down so she could join him in his seat._

_The General threw Raditz another curious look, only to find that he was already glancing Turles' direction. After a brief, but silent, exchange, the taller Saiyan nodded and Turles begrudgingly pushed himself up. Heavy boots stomped along the table, setting the plates and glasses rattling, before reaching the little temptress and hooking an arm under her stomach._

_She moaned in disapproval as he lifted her up, but her cries were immediately drowned out by the roar of excitement his intervention elicited from the rest of the crowd. Marching back across the bench top, he caught one last nod from his Kaiser before striding towards the passage door._

_The girl was impossible. Simultaneously infuriating and entirely alluring. When he reached her door and lowered her to her mattress, he had to ask himself how he kept finding himself in these situations with her. The close proximity tested his will repeatedly, especially after her bizarre behaviour in the engine room. He'd never gone from wanting to kill someone to wanting to taste them quite so rapidly._

_Inadvertently inhaling on his way up, he couldn't help but notice she still lacked the Kaiser's prominent scent._

Was I wrong about him? _he wondered silently._ I know he wants her. Everyone does. _Perhaps she had been rebuffing his advances._

 _As he stood in the doorway, casting one last look, Turles recalled the escapades as Serce's brothel._ I underestimated her, _he acknowledged._ She's effective beyond comprehension. And yet… _he'd caught the genuine pleading in her eyes when she interrupted the death of a completely disposable henchman. Even her offence at his mindless assault of that homeless trash bag was unfathomable._

 _Turles realised his initial apprehension surrounding the girl may have been misplaced._ Beneath the arrogance and vanity lies a soft-heart _, he catalogued, watching as she rubbed her nose in her sleep._ Just like the Kaiser's mother.

_She may not have the stomach for malice, he decided, but that didn't make her any less dangerous._

* * *

While he sat with his back to her, Bulla snipped at a few more stragglers, dipping either side of him to check for symmetry.

"This would have been a lot easier with a mirror," the heiress grumbled, dragging her fingers through his freshly cut strands. "But apparently Saiyans aren't vain enough to check their reflection every time they enter a new room."

She spun him around to face her and bent at the knee, trying to bring herself in line with his face while she carefully added her finishing touches. "Keep still, Goten," she scolded for the fiftieth time, placing her fingertips either side of his head to get him in position.

"You're so bossy," he grinned, causing her to meet his gaze with an eye roll.

"Well, you're not making this any easier for me!" she chided, forced to bring his face back to centre yet again. "You're so wriggly."

"I can't help it," he whined, scratching at his nose. "I get restless. I'm not used to sitting still for this long."

"You're a martial artist," Bulla scoffed. "Don't pretend you don't know what meditation is."

"Now you know my weak spot," he jested, rolling his shoulders. "It drove Piccolo nuts. I'm pretty sure he tried to get me medicated at one point."

Bulla couldn't help but giggle at the thought. "Was there _anyone_ you didn't annoy back then?"

"You found me annoying?" he pouted. "Man, Vegeta really got to you early, didn't he."

"It wasn't because of my dad," Bulla laughed, brushing her fingers over his face to remove the worst of the off-cuts. "It was because you were so nonchalant about everything. It annoyed me how nothing seemed to bother you, because I got both of my parent's tempers."

"Things bother me," he shrugged, squinting while she continued to paw at him.

"Yeah," she muttered absently, pinching a clipping off his cheekbone. "Like what?"

"Like being forced to watch while Auber dragged his filthy hands all over you," he answered, features straightening. "Or not knowing what happened to you when I woke up on Bardock's ship."

Bulla's fingers dropped, along with her heart.

He gazed back at her, all signs of jest now gone. "It tore me apart watching them take you away. And not being able to do anything about it."

"Goten." Her shoulders slumped before she pressed her palm to his stubbled cheek. "That's… If it makes you feel better, I woke up unharmed in a private suite. Even the door was locked. I'm pretty sure they left me completely alone."

"Good," was all he said as he glanced away. She could see the vein at his temple pulsing while his jaw tensed.

She kept her hand on his face while he continued to mull silently. "What are you thinking right now?"

"I'm thinking your little friend might be onto something," he answered with unexpected seriousness.

"What do you mean?" Bulla placed the scissors on a nearby end table, figuring the cutting component of this exercise was officially over.

"Look." He slowly exhaled through his nostrils. It was rare for her to see heat behind his eyes, but there was a hint of it right then and it left her uneasy. "I'm not looking for a repeat of Advent."

Her breath caught. _Oh my God, we're actually talking about this._ She didn't need a mirror to know that all the colour in her face had drained and she, no doubt, appeared white as a sheet. _And he doesn't want me._

"So please just..." he hesitated before glancing back at her. "Hear me out when I say watch your back around these Saiyans, alright? They don't think like we do."

"What do you-?"

"I'm trying not to overstep here," he added with notable restraint. "I know you can take care of yourself."

A frown spread across her features as she grew increasingly jittery. "What exactly are you trying to tell me?" She drew her palm back.

After a few seconds of silence, he let out a breath, "Nothing," and shook his head. "You've been with these guys longer than I have, so you know how to handle yourself around them by now, right?"

Bulla nodded, feeling her eyes beginning to sting.

"Hey." He lowered his head, attempting to meet her reluctant gaze. "What's been going on with you lately?"

"What do you mean?" she asked quietly.

"Something's changed." The corners of his eyes drooped, the rest of his features sinking with them. "Sometimes you go from Captain Bulla, light and airy like that bouncy kid I remember tearing around CC-" She broke into an involuntary smile, feeling the nostalgia pull at the reminder of a simpler era. "To this." He swept her lengthening blue locks out of her eyes and tucked it behind her ear. "Out of nowhere."

"To what?" she whispered.

He brushed his thumb over her cheek. "You get this look in your eye," he responded equally softly. "And become really distant. It comes so quickly it reminds me of those sandstorms on Bhander."

 _God, this guy,_ she winced, urging herself to keep it together. _Even if he did want me, I wouldn't deserve him,_ she realised with a painful stab. _Not in a million years._

Bulla managed to force a weak smile as she brought her fingers up to graze the hand still holding her face, squeezing down when she felt hot tears build.

 _Would you still look at me like this if you ever learned the truth?_ She suppressed a choke.

The door swung open behind them, and the meek junior Doctor she'd met earlier fumbled in, carrying a stack of papers. Bulla instinctively stepped back while Goten slowly lowered his hand, both turning their heads to face her.

"Oh good, you're still here," Nel exhaled, fingers on the handle. "The Kaiser wants to see you." Bulla pushed into her knee to begin straightening when Nel spoke up once again. "Not you," she smiled before nodding at the dark-haired halfling. "You."

* * *

" _Kiss me."_

 _Turles recoiled as he held his hands to her fine waist, thumbs grazing over the smooth nylon of her bodysuit. She'd been playing games with everyone all night, whether she was aware of it or not. Judging by the blush that hit her cheeks after Rhubo's bold proposition, he suspected she was more innocent to her wiles than she appeared. So he sent them on their way._ Those boys could only dream of having a night with this one _._

_Then she turned the tables on the General himself, rubbing herself all over him and begging him to take her to bed. All the ambiguity he'd rationalised away over the weeks couldn't save him now._

_Here she was, in his arms outside her room and pleading with him to claim her._ What more of a signal do I need? _His fingers were itching and his dick was throbbing. If his nose wasn't deceiving him earlier, then she was indeed free for the taking, and oh how he burned to take her._

_His mind had the scene in his head already, primed and ready to go:_

_Slamming her against the wall as he dove for her neck, sending his hands over each hill and valley her skinsuit boasted._

_Dragging her into the suite and falling to the floor while his fingers ripped her armour right off. He envied the Kaiser's good fortune of being able to spy what he suspected to be heavenly skin under all those layers - soft, spared, flawless._

_Once she was sufficiently undressed, he'd bury his face between her legs and see for himself if she tasted as incredible as she smelt._

Easy, boy.

_Reeling himself back to the present moment, Turles glided his nose across her flushed cheek until he hovered over her neck, positively bursting to kick-start their night of endless sin._

_And then he caught it._

_It was faint, but it was there. Sometime between putting her to bed earlier in the evening and now, she'd had an encounter with his Kaiser._

_He hesitated, telling himself that there was some other explanation for his scent on her, but he barely recalled seeing them in each other's company since she returned. Publicly, at least._

_Alarm bells blared in his ears._

Dammit.

_With a frustrated exhale, he stepped away from the siren, drunk on equal parts booze and lust._

Dangerous, _he reminded himself as he kept his gaze ahead and marched towards his room._

* * *

Bulla followed as Goten strode casually towards the gymnasium. Despite not even being the one who was summoned, Bulla couldn't get a handle on her nerves. She had no idea what Raditz could possibly want with her fellow earthling, and she wasn't willing to wait until after to find out. Goten didn't seem to have a concept of _details,_ so this time she decided to watch their interaction with her own eyes.

Once inside, she was surprised to see only Turles, Raditz and Bardock present. She cocked her head at the General, noting that he was wearing nothing more than his boots and bodysuit while he stretched his arm across his chest. Even his gauntlets were on the ground next to the training mats, along with his chest plate.

Bulla hung back while Goten stepped over to his uncle and grandfather. Raditz spoke first, causing the halfling to glance over at the ferocious General before giving short nod. Bardock was the next one to speak, pressing his hand to his grandson's shoulder.

Goten simply gave a thumbs up and padded towards the mat, bringing his palms together and offering a bow before dipping into a familiar crouch

 _Oh,_ Bulla gulped.

She watched from the sidelines as they eased into their match, each one watching the other carefully while they traded sparse blows. _They're feeling each other out,_ she noted. Quietly, she stepped towards the tiered stands, joining Bardock while Raditz paced along the bottom, not taking his eyes off the pair for a second.

She audibly winced when Turles sunk his fist into Goten's cheek, placing the halfling in a temporary daze. _Come on, Goten,_ she rooted silently.

Goten jumped back and shook off the hit, bouncing on the balls of his feet while he watched for an opening. When Turles threw his next punch, he was ready, rearing his head before catching the fist in his palm and driving his shin into Turles' exposed side.

_Got em!_

As the pace built, each one grew increasingly sure of their own standing. It was the first time she'd seen the General against a worthy opponent and she couldn't help but weigh their styles. Goten - light, quick and evasive. Turles - hard, heavy and expectedly aggressive. When his blows landed, they were devastating and made the whole room shake.

Twenty minutes in, it was still hard to declare who had the upper hand. Raditz raised his arm, grabbing his comrade's attention. Turles looked to him in question as the wild-haired Saiyan extended his two forefingers and bent them towards the ceiling.

 _Up?_ Bulla tried to decode the signal.

"You sure?" she heard Turles breath.

Raditz simply gave a nod and in an instant, the room turned yellow.

 _Oh my God._ Bulla stared, gobsmacked, at the man she'd been tormenting since she'd arrived. _He's a fucking Super Saiyan?!_ It never got old watching the transformation, and feeling the colossal, raw energy that radiated out each time someone ascended. Her mouth was agape at the sight. _Look at him!_

Following suit, Goten did the same, seamlessly slipping into his golden form. _Kami, it's been so long since I've seen him like this._ Her heart was aflutter. And he was looking especially breathtaking after his haircut, not that any of the others probably even noticed.

With the stakes raised, both men upped their game, strikes growing faster and harder. With a well-timed kick, Turles sent Goten flying right at the Kaiser, causing him to collide with his front before he had a chance to stop himself. Raditz simply caught him like a bale of hay before throwing him back in the pseudo-ring.

"My grandson is tenacious," Bardock commented, speaking for the first time since Bulla had decided to sit next to him. "Turles has a way of intimidating anyone he faces, but Goten doesn't falter."

The corner of heiress' mouth pulled. "I don't think anyone in that family has ever faced an opponent without a smile," she told him with a touch of pride. "It's just not in their nature to get scared."

"I thought I saw fear in his face the first time I fought him," Bardock countered, causing her to throw him a doubtful look. "When I interrupted his attack on Turles' Captain."

 _Huh?_ Bulla's brows creased together.

"He looked right in my eyes and hesitated."

_What is he talking about?_

"I only found out after the fact that he'd fleetingly thought I was his father."

"What happened?" she frowned, now completely focused on the veteran instead of the gripping duel. "Why would he fight you? Or anyone else? He's not like that."

After a few seconds, Bardock answered, "Because of you."

 _I kind of lost my temper,_ she recalled Goten's words the day before. "Why me?"

He glanced at her, guarded, before looking to Raditz. "You've been enchanting the men on this fleet, it seems," he eventually stated, ignoring her question.

She tried to respond, but let out an ungraceful choked cough instead.

"Not least of which, my son."

At this, Bulla blanched completely, eyes growing wide as beach balls. "I don't-"

"Don't bother denying it," he told her plainly. "The writing's on the wall. All it takes is one look at you and we can all see why."

What sounded like a compliment really felt like a slap in the face and she suddenly wanted to crawl into a cocoon and bury herself underground.

"Correct me if I'm wrong." His eyes were back on the match, following their movements easily while Bulla struggled to remember what speaking was. "But I believe it was Raditz' tail, and not Turles', that was wrapped around your leg when Goten and I arrived on this boat?"

"Y-yes?" she managed to squeeze out after a lengthy silence.

"Ordinarily I wouldn't spend a second mulling over his personal affairs," he continued coolly. "But circumstances are rather distinct this time around."

Bulla refrained from responding, unsure what sound would come out of her mouth if she tried opening it again.

"Whatever you do," he voiced, tone low. "Remember that he is responsible for the thousands of men, women and children who look to him as their saviour." He turned his head to meet her gaze, stern and sober, so like his eldest son and entirely unlike the other. "That weight is his cross to bear, and I know it all too well. Tread carefully. For your sake. His. And everyone else's."

At that exact moment, Bulla jumped out of her seat with a start when she heard a loud crash, eyes immediately falling to a downed Turles, hair black and face soaked while Goten heaved heavy breaths beside him - bent over with his hands on his knees, but hair still golden. The halfling lifted his head, catching the heiress' gaze, and broke into a lazy smile. She gleamed back, bubbling with pride at his narrow victory, but still hearing his grandfather's loaded words skating around her head.

Goten stepped over to the puffed General and extended a hand. After a few seconds, Turles obliged, pulling himself up. The demi-Saiyan gave him a clap on the shoulder before looking to the Kaiser, expression straightening when they exchanged a glance.

She didn't even realise she was holding her breath until she saw Raditz offer him a nod. Goten returned the gesture before stumbling towards the heiress, prompting her to quickly hop down the steps.

"Great going, Goten," she clapped, grinning up at him while she looped her arm around his back. He hung his own arm across her shoulders, visibly exhausted, while they headed for the exit. "I had no idea he was that powerful."

Bulla turned her head to cast one last curious gaze towards the pure-blooded warriors. They were already in conversation, though only Bardock and Turles were speaking while the tallest of the three observed the half-Saiyans, a furry, brown tail slowly swaying behind him as he watched the back of the older hybrid's head.

* * *

"Goten, look!"

Bulla had her nose and fingertips pressed right to the glass, watching the slowly expanding ground beneath her, all but bouncing on the spot.

He came up behind her, peering over her shoulder as she turned back to beam at him. She couldn't help but take in his careful expression as he registered the new planet before them. "So this is Crest," he uttered, leaning his palm against the window above her.

Blood-red sky and mauve-toned earth, she noted when she turned back around. She'd never seen anything like it. _The home I never even knew existed._

"People!" she squealed, jumping in excitement at the ant-sized bodies milling around the landing zone, dust swirling all around them as the ship descended. She drew in a slow breath as she pivoted to face him, eyes wide as planets themselves. "Oh my God, do you feel that?"

Gradually his own grin grew as he looked down at her. Without another word, she grabbed his hand and barrelled down the hallway, pushing past hordes of soldiers and dancing in anticipation while she waited for the ramp to lower. Goten was merely a passenger as she raced out the door, head swivelling manically until she spotted her target.

Dropping her fellow Earthling's hand, she bee-lined ahead, flying right over the tarmac, and wrapped all four limbs around the armour-clad form of her beloved brother while she wailed into his ear. He squeezed her right back, laughing at her larger-than-life presence as she wriggled in his arms.

"Trunks!" she exclaimed, smothering him in kisses. She pulled back to look at him, holding his head between her hands. His hair was so long now, easily reaching his shoulders and he was looking more chiselled and modelesque than ever. "You're here!"

"Yeah, I'm here," he chuckled, grinning up at her. "We landed about twelve hours ago." Trunks looked past his sister, offering a genial nod to his old friend. Bulla dropped down, allowing the two pseudo-brothers to reunite in peace and watching as they exchanged their own warm hug.

Her heart swelled at the sight. _We're all back together again,_ she cooed.

The two boys were smiling as Trunks held his palm to Goten's shoulder while the younger of the two tugged at the Trunks' lavender locks. Soon, she heard her brother's all too rare laughter bursting forth yet again, adding a cherry to her already unbreakable mood.

As she watched the ever-nostalgic sight of her brother and Goten, brothers in arms as she'd always known them to be, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Absently twisting around to see who could possibly be disturbing her in such a moment, Bulla didn't even have time to draw in a breath before she erupted into scream so loud, it may well have reached the Kais. Hands flailed before wrapping themselves around a set of fine shoulders.

 _I've definitely died._ Bulla was almost hyperventilating. She had lost complete control of her own body as she embraced the woman in front of her. "This can't be real. I don't believe what I'm seeing."

"Well, believe it, Princess, because I sure as hell experienced a very real journey trying to find you guys," Pan jested, waving to her uncle when the others turned to see what the commotion was all about.

"Oh my God, _Pan._ " Bulla was starting to lose all grip. " _What are you doing here?_ " she squeaked, feeling herself wanting to cry.

"Later," she responded, eyes locking on to something behind the heiress. "More importantly, who are they?"

Bulla turned too, keeping her arm around her best friend's waist as she followed her gaze to the ship's ramp. Three men marched down, each as imposing and straight-faced as the next.

"Hold on to your hat, Sweet P," she exhaled. "You won't believe what I'm about to tell you."


	21. Oblivion

" _Goku!" Bulma screamed into her phone, sending her cat scurrying under the couch for safety. "Why has it been so hard to get hold of you? I gave you your own cell for a reason!"_

" _I'm sorry, Bulma." She could practically hear the puppy dog pout through the receiver. "I was just-"_

" _It doesn't matter," she quickly interrupted. After finally getting through to the evasive alien, the last thing she needed was to waste time listening to his excuses. "Get over here right now."_

" _But-"_

" _ **NOW!"**_ _Bulma slapped her thumb against the big red button and slammed her phone to the table, tapping her fingers to her arm while she waited for him to appear in front of her. At least this time she'd be expecting him._

_When he arrived, he still managed to knock the words right out of her mouth._

" _ **What is wrong with you?!**_ "  _she cried, completely floored that even after all this time it still escaped him how to behave like a regular Earthling. With her palm over her eyes, she pointed to Vegeta's closet. "Find something in there, please, before I scream for you know who."_

" _Why are you so angry?" he whined. "You told me to come 'now', so I did."_

_It seemed her threat was unnecessary because Vegeta appeared within a few seconds anyway. "What are you doing in my room," he warned from the doorway. "Nude and trifling through my drawers, no less."_

" _Bulma told me to," Goku sulked, pulling something over his head that was definitely a size too small. "I don't know why she'd call me over for this." He continued scratching around, presumably seeking something for his lower half. He eventually found some drawstring shorts loose enough to fit over his legs before giving Bulma the okay._

_Despite her frantic mood, she couldn't help but snort at the sight of her oldest friend standing in her room in nothing more than a pair of short shorts and t-shirt that bared his still-toned midriff._

" _That looks like something Bulla would have worn back in high school," she snickered, eliciting a disapproving grunt from the older of the two men. Thoughts of her daughter soon wrangled her back to task, however. "Goku, I need you to contact King Kai," she spoke seriously._

" _King Kai?" he repeated, pulling at the hem of his top. "Why?"_

" _Because I haven't heard from our kids in two weeks!" she exclaimed, heart beginning to race at the reminder. "It's normal for them to go quiet for a few days, and Advent was a bigger mission than usual, but I'm starting to worry. Vegeta can't get a lock on them and I feel like Trunks would have gotten hold of me by now."_

_She heard Vegeta let out a sigh and threw him a cutting look. Immediately, he reared, showing both palms._

" _Okay let me try." Goku brought two fingers to his forehead and closed his eyes in concentration while Bulma held her breath. After a minute, he dropped his hand and crossed his arms. "Hmm, nothing…"_

_The unthinkable was beginning to creep again._

" _Goku," she stepped towards him, fists tensed at her sides. "King. Kai."_

" _Jeez, fine!" he frowned, edging away from her piercing gaze. "Why do you have to go looking at me like that? King Kai!"_

" _Hey, Mrs B." Pan skipped into the master bedroom, glistening and bright, shoulder length hair swaying over her open collar. "What's up?"_

" _Oh, Pan." Bulma immediately embraced the young socialite, squeezing her tightly. "I'm so happy to see you. Thank you for coming at such short notice."_

" _No problem," she smiled, though appeared to be a little apprehensive about the overly affectionate greeting. "What's my grandpa doing here?"_

_Both women looked to the heartening Saiyan who was staring at the ceiling with folded arms. "Yeah, Bulma says she hasn't heard anything in a while. Can you help us? Are they okay?"_

" _Where were they when you last spoke to them?" King Kai's voice filled the room._

" _They were just approaching Advent," Bulma answered, nails digging into her palms while she waited for response._ C'mon guys,  _she pleaded._ Please be okay.  _Her nerves were threatening to get the best of her, but she soon felt Vegeta's approach. When she lifted her gaze, he offered a quiet nod._ He trained them himself,  _she soothed._ No one could possibly hurt them.

" _I've found them!" King Kai announced after a few death-inducing minutes. Bulma all but exploded._

" _Where are they?" she rushed out. "Are they safe? What are they doing?"_

" _Hang on, hang on," he chided. "They're still in space."_

" _We could have guessed as much, you worthless-" Vegeta cut in but ended his sentence when Bulma gave him a pinch. "Where in space?" he asked, markedly more diplomatically._

" _All three of them look to be on a ship of some kind," the kai mulled._

" _A ship?" Bulma questioned, tilting her head. "And it's not one of mine?"_

" _It's not from earth," he confirmed. "There are others on there too."_

" _Oh Kami!" Bulma gripped Vegeta's arm in panic. "They've been kidnapped." Her worst fears had come true. Their three precious babies were captives for some crazy alien swarm. "We have to do something." She shook the diminutive Saiyan next to her. "We have to get out there and save them!"_

" _Slow down," King Kai eased, giving her temporary pause. "They don't look like captives at all. I'm watching Goten right now and he's laughing."_

" _What?" Pan suddenly perked up. "He's having fun?"_

" _What about Bulla?" Bulma pleaded, still squeezing Vegeta's arm with all she had. "And Trunks. What are_ they  _doing?"_

" _Hmm..." King Kai pondered out loud. "I don't think they're on this one. Oh!" He cleared his throat. "I've found Bulla. She's on another vessel some way ahead."_

" _She's okay?" Bulma almost fell to her knees in relief, but Vegeta gripped under her arm before she reached the floor. "What is she doing?"_

" _Uh...Let's see what Trunks is up to..." The Northern Kai suggested._

" _King Kai!" Bulma screeched. "Tell me about my children, please!"_

" _Ah!" he suddenly shouted before letting out an 'oof', along with a muffled groan._

" _Did you just fall?" Goku asked innocently, the lines in his forehead creasing in confusion. "It sounded like you fell."_

" _ **Both of your children are fine!"**_   _he insisted. "Please ask me something else now."_

" _How do we find them?" Bulma called out. "I want them back. This has been too much to handle, I don't know what I was thinking sending them away like this." She shook her fists in frustration, mostly at herself. "That's enough soul searching, help me bring them home!"_

" _Well," he began. "I can't exactly give you coordinates since they're constantly on the move." Bulma felt like a hot kettle ready to burst. "But!" he quickly added. "It seems everyone aboard is… Saiyan?"_

" _ **What?!"**_ _All four of the room's occupants erupted in harmony. Bulma damn near fainted while Pan and her grandfather bubbled, showing equal amounts of optimism. Vegeta merely narrowed his eyes, seemingly assessing the possibility of such a wild claim._

" _Saiyans!" Goku beamed, fingers twitching. "How many of them? Are they powerful?"_

" _Hmm..." the Kai pondered again. "A few hundred I'd say, across all three ships. Some are very powerful indeed, though none as strong as you or Vegeta."_

" _Oh." Goku visibly deflated._

_Pan was still hanging on to his every word, however. "Oh my God, they met Saiyans," she moaned, face falling completely. "As if it wasn't bad enough that I missed out on the regular_   _adventure, they had to go and meet the cousins while they were up there too?"_

" _Are they in need of assistance, Kai?" Vegeta voiced calmly, apparently the only one still present enough for the conversation at hand._

" _Unless they all have Stockholm Syndrome," he responded plainly. "It really doesn't look like it."_

" _Argh!" Pan yelled into her palms. After a few moments of wallowing, she threw her head back, pupils fully dilated. "Bulma!" She grabbed the petite woman's shoulders. "Does your offer still stand about the one-man ship?"_

" _Uh...Sure? But-"_

_The quarterling grabbed her wrist and tore through the CC halls, dashing across the yard and ripping the doors to the hangar wide open. "How quickly can you get it ready?"_

" _Pan," Bulma chuckled nervously. "Think about this for a second. Going to space isn't something people do on the spur of the moment."_

_The hybrid gave her a look._

" _Right, I forgot who I was dealing with." Bulma pressed her hand to her face while she asked herself how feasible this idea really was. Neither Vegeta nor Goku appeared to be jumping at the opportunity, and she had no reason to force them to since a rescue mission was apparently unnecessary. Goku bowed out as soon as he learned there would be no one to challenge him, and Vegeta seemed to lose all sense of wanderlust after Trunks was born. For a proud Saiyan Prince, he didn't appear all that excited to hear about more of his people being discovered, leading her to suspect that his contact with the universe six folk sated any potential appetite he may have had for dealing with his old warrior race._

_The CC head cast a glance to the frothing socialite in front of her, deep brown eyes bigger than she'd ever seen them._  How am I supposed to say no to a Son?  _She let out a sigh and a gave a small nod, realising that Pan had arguably drawn the shortest straw when it came to public image, and was probably only too eager to gain some reprieve from all the noise._

" _Yes!" Pan jumped, punching the air in victory. "Tell me what to do and I'll do it. Let's go!"_

* * *

Pan stared, wide-eyed, between the two caped men in front of her. "Bulla…" she gawked, uncharacteristically lost for words while the heiress continued to hold her hand and take in each twitch and jerk the quarterling's face made as she attempted to make sense of the scene in front of her. Turles wore his standard snarl, rearing his head as Pan inched closer, the socialite's eyes trailing every millimetre of his features before snapping her head to the scarred warrior next to him.

"Gods, they're multiplying," the General muttered, casting Bulla a disapproving frown.

Pan poked the end of one of Bardock's spikes with a gasp before bringing her gaze downward, large deep-toned eyes meeting impossibly bottomless black ones.

"Pan," Bulla smiled, giving the older girl's hand a squeeze as she battled to contain her excitement. "Meet your great-grandfather."

The quarterling's jaw dropped right to the tarmac. " **No. Fucking. Way!"**  she all but exploded. "You're ..?!"

Bulla sniggered, twisting around and sticking her tongue out to her brother when her fellow female hybrid stopped responding altogether."I think I broke her." She turned to the Kaiser, "Hey Raditz," causing him to tear his attention away from the new hybrid and offer Bulla the mildest of glances. "Remember that boy you were telling me about? The one you kidnapped forever ago? This is his precious daughter and my very best friend." The heiress dragged said friend along while she continued to short-circuit, presenting her to the mountain of a Saiyan before them.

" **You're the one who kidnapped my dad?!** " Pan blurted yet again before glaring to Bulla accusingly. "How can you be hanging around this guy?" she frowned. "He's evil!"

"Relax." Bulla forced a laugh, "Who  _hasn't_  kidnapped your dad by now, amiright?" and waved her hand, immediately dismissing the older hybrid's concerns. "He's fine."

"Yet another Earthling trouble maker," was Raditz' version of a greeting. Pan immediately recoiled, though the heiress didn't skip a beat.

"You thought  _I_ was trouble?" Bulla chuckled, perhaps more out of nervousness than anything else. Admittedly, she hadn't counted on Pan - or anyone else! - meeting her secret paramour. "I ain't got nothing on this one."

"Hey-!" Pan began interjecting, but was interrupted when a pair of arms wrapped around her shoulders from behind.

"What's this, you little traitor," Goten teased, planting a kiss on her rosy cheek. "Greeting the others before saying hello to your favourite uncle?"

"You're my only uncle." She rolled her eyes before spinning on her boot to offer a warm embrace. The quarterling squealed when he bent backwards, lifting her feet right off the ground as he pulled her with him.

Bulla couldn't help but press her palms to her chest at the sight.  _These two cuties,_ she fawned.

"Not anymore," he countered, throwing a wink to the Kaiser as he dropped her back to the ground.

She wriggled back around while he kept his arms draped over her, and pivoted to face the rest of her space-bound relatives. "I guess I do have a new uncle now, huh?" Pan looked to the Kaiser doubtfully. "What should I call you?"

"You shouldn't need to call me anything," Raditz answered tersely, glancing towards a building Bulla presumed to be air control. "I can't imagine we'll have all that much to speak about." With that, he began making his way through the cluster while his newfound niece grimaced.

"Raditz," Bulla called, reaching for his arm and interrupting his exit while aquamarine brows drew together. "Why do you have to be such an ass all the time?"

"It's cool, B." Pan shook off his abrupt demeanour with a smile. "I can handle it. He's a lot like your dad."

The heiress' eyes shot open at the innocuous comment while she sucked a sharp breath in through her nostrils.  _Oh, shit._ Immediately, she began waving her fingers at her throat, the universal signal for  _shutthefuckup._

Raditz stiffened for a brief moment before a smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth and he twisted to display a sinister smile at the older of the two girls. "Is that so?"

Trunks wandered over too. "Hey," he greeted the Kaiser. "I hear you're the guy in charge around here." The oldest hybrid shifted his calm gaze to Bulla. "And I hear you and your soldiers kept an eye on my sister while we were separated. Ignoring, of course, the fact that you were the ones to separate us in the first place."

Raditz attention was now well removed from the quarterling as his dark orbs honed in on the lavender-haired Earthling. "The bastard prince's bastard prince," he commented, immediately straightening his posture.

Bardock stepped forward too at Trunks' approach. "You really are royals," he uttered, eyes raking over the oldest halfling's features in disbelief. "I feel like I'm looking at the king. How did Turles miss it?"

Trunks watched both Saiyans cautiously before continuing, "Thanks for bringing her back to me in one piece." He stepped over to his sister, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "I don't know what I would have done if I found out something happened to her."

Bulla gleamed back at him, bringing her arm up past his spine and leaning her face into his chest.  _God, I love this guy,_ she bubbled, lowering her lids in bliss.

Raditz said nothing as his eyes scanned the four hybrids, all still wrapped in each other in various ways, before hovering his gaze to the youngest of the group.  _Be nice,_ she mouthed, giving him a look of warning.

Still keeping his own eyes on the eldest of the party, Bardock spoke up. "Your ships should be ready in a few hours."

"About that." Trunks let out a breath as he dropped his arm and took a step forward, turning to face his fellow Earthlings. "If it's alright with you guys, I've told Cinna I'd like to stay for a couple extra days or so." Bulla stiffened. "Take in the sights, meet the rest of our people. Find out what life as a Saiyan really looks like."

She could feel Goten's attention on her. "Sure," the dark-haired halfling shrugged. "If Bulla doesn't mind, it suits me fine too. I'm in no hurry."

All eyes were on the heiress while she hesitated. "Uhm," Bulla stalled. Behind her brother, she saw the Kaiser stop in his tracks, slowly turning his head and meeting her tentative gaze. "Yeah, of course. Let's do that."

"Oh, thank God," Pan groaned, body slumping in relief. "I'm dying to see this place, but I thought you probably wanted to get your ass back to your belongings on Advent."

Seeing her friend's barely restrained enthusiasm, Bulla forced herself to shelve her current trepidation.  _She's the real adventure demon between the lot of us,_ she realised.  _She should get to have some fun too._ "Hey Pan," Bulla spoke up, sneaking a glimpse of a Navy cape in the background while its wearer conversed with another soldier. "While these guys exchange pleasantries you should help me convince Turles to give us a tour."

The General loosened his arms at the mention of his name, mouth gaping as his face promptly twisted into a look of growing horror. "Absolutely not."

" _That's his way of saying yes,"_ Bulla whispered, causing her counterpart to snicker. Clutching Pan's hand, the duo skipped towards the surly warrior, each donning an eager grin.

"Go away," he immediately reacted.

"Just smile at him," Bulla instructed to the girl next to her while each faced the Goku doppelganger. "He'll wear down eventually."

* * *

" _I taught him that move," Nappa grunted, catching the demi-Saiyan off guard as he brought a meaty hand to his neck and slammed down, holding him firmly in place while he writhed beneath him. "And this was always how I got the advantage back."_

_Trunks gripped the gargantuan man's wrists as he fought against his tightening grip, face turning red._ Fuck, he's strong.  _Planting his feet, Trunks lifted through his back before swinging out a leg, hoping to throw the General off balance, but Nappa's free hand caught it as soon as it came._

" _Just like your father," he laughed gruffly. "Too much like him."_

_Without ascending, Trunks was completely stuck and he knew it, so he tapped his hand to the mat. Nappa promptly loosened his hold, straightening with a smug huff._

" _Very good, Nappa."_

_Trunks rolled the back of his head against the soft floor, looking to the ship's commander while she clapped lazily in approval of his shameful domination against the lumbering Saiyan._

" _Don't praise me like some dog, Cinna," Nappa snarled as he approached her._

" _But you're such a good boy, General," she persisted with a teasing smirk, the corner of her mouth pulling high enough to reveal an alarmingly sharp canine. "Definitely my favourite."_

_He wiped his hand down her face as he headed for the doors, earning himself a muffled moan. Trunks could only smile at the dynamic. For such a high-ranking Saiyan, Cinna was unexpectedly impish, though he'd been on the wrong side of her enough times to know she certainly had a dark side._

_It had been a week since Nappa unexpectedly joined their ship, and their first encounter was… intense. He hadn't even been warned that the General was coming, but when they crossed paths in the passageway one morning, the contortions in the older man's face was enough to make Trunks plant his feet. After finding himself throttled against a wall and experiencing his fair share of posturing, smack talk and vicious jabs, Nappa eventually let slip that he'd met Bulla and squared off against the heiress himself. Cinna was none too pleased about the indiscretion, but it took a huge load off the halfling's shoulders to know that his sister was in one piece, and apparently holding her own against these fiery warriors._

" _It seems you two have a way of catching the higher-ups attention," was the bulk of what Nappa was willing to share about his beloved sister, but it was better than nothing. "And earning yourself privileges you have no right gaining."_

" _Sounds like Bulla," Trunks had grinned rather proudly._

" _Trunks," Cinna called as the halfling pushed into his hands and returned to his feet. The room was empty now, save for the two of them, and even then she glanced around cautiously before lowering her voice. "That thing you do. The energy sensing thing." She swirled her finger. "How long would it take to learn?"_

_He looked back at her for a few silent moments, intrigued. "Hard to say." He chewed the inside of his cheek in consideration of her question. "Depends on how receptive you are to learning something new. Why do you ask?"_

" _Don't play coy with me," she growled, gripping his collar in her first and baring her teeth._

" _Think you can handle being my student?" he responded, lavender eyebrow cocked._

" _Say a word of this to anyone and I will castrate you with my bare hands," was her answer._

" _Can't wait to work with you," he replied._

* * *

"Oh my god, a  _fruit stall_?" Bulla cooed for the thousandth time in the past hour. "That's adorable." She beamed up at the man next to her while she clutched his arm, continuing to point at every new element that caught her eye while they wandered through the main street. As she should have expected, Saiyans seemed to live humble existences on Crest. Most of the homes were modest dome-shaped bungalows with dirt floors and wooden furniture from what she'd spied through a few open doors and windows. The major area of settlement wasn't large at all, compared to what she was used back in West City. The roads weren't even sealed, and their boots kicked up dust every time they took a step. Bulla couldn't help but fall for its charm immediately.

"What do you think, Pan?" She turned to her friend, watching in amusement as the girl ooo'd and ahh'd at each building they passed. "Isn't this place kind of cool?"

"More than kind of!" Pan exclaimed, mouth open while dark eyes darted over their surrounds. "It's amazing. I feel like I'm going back to my roots." Her attention fell on an open doorway. "I'd love to see the inside of one of these buildings."

"Ooh!" Bulla clapped her hands together. "Turles, can we see your house? Pretty please?"

Instantly, he scowled at the request. "Why would you even think I'd say yes to that?"

"So you do have one then?" Bulla pressed, ignoring the very clear 'no' in his answer. She felt a tug on her sleeve and spotted Pan pointing to a nearby dwelling, larger than most. It caught her interest too. "What's that?" she asked.

"Early battle school," Turles answered. "For those under six who show promise. Starts priming them young and promotes rapid progress through higher levels of training."

The two girls exchanged eager glances before running through the open door.

"Hey!" the General called out as he chased after them. "Don't interfere!"

"Sooo cuuute!" Both hybrids squealed once they encountered rows of mini soldiers, all wearing full Saiyan military uniforms while their instructor worked them through their katas.

Immediately, everyone inside went straight as a post, bringing two fingers to their forehead.

"General Turles," the woman at the front of the room spoke with mild surprise. "I didn't know to expect you this afternoon." Her eyes glossed over the rest of the room. "To what do I and my students owe this great pleasure?"

Bulla could barely process the image in front of her, all these tiny faces looking in complete admiration to the man on her right.  _Whoa. He's a bit of a big deal to them._

" _Bulla, look at that one,"_ Pan whispered, gesturing to a little girl who could not have been any older than three, pigtails each side of her head, face and legs still chubby and soft.

The heiress nearly died on the spot.  _Oh my god, are Saiyan babies really that cute?_

"We have a few… guests to Crest," Turles answered, offering his own salute to the class and allowing them to ease their stances. "I've been tasked with showing them around the city."

"What a wonderful surprise," she smiled, turning to the hybrids. "We don't often get to see foreigners. From what planet to do you ladies hail?"

"Earth," Pan told her, already inching towards one of the boys near the front. "We're part Saiyan too, actually."

"Even you?" A sceptical little soldier pointed to the heiress, cocking his head in doubt.

"A-huh." Bulla crouched down in front of him. "My daddy is a powerful Saiyan, just like yours I bet."

"My father is one of the strongest," he stated proudly, already beginning to tower over his other classmates.

She felt Turles energy behind her. "That's enough disruption. Let's go."

"Is he?" Bulla's eyes gleamed, not even acknowledging the older fighter. "What's his name? Maybe I've met him already."

"He's a General too," the boy asserted. "His name is Nappa."

Aquamarine orbs burst open as she threw her hands to her mouth, turning to glare at an increasingly impatient Turles.  _Nappa's a daddy?_  Pan gasped too, to the heiress' surprise.

"We'll be leaving now," Turles informed, nodding to the instructor before scooping Bulla off the ground and ushering her through the door as a choir of voices called after them, singing their goodbyes.

"Bye!" Bulla waved, fizzing at the innocence and promise each little soul harboured.

Pan, who had been floating on cloud nine all afternoon anyway, was in a complete daze. "Bulla, I think we've both died. This is what heaven looks like, I'm sure of it."

Turles merely grumbled while the heiress clung to his arm and sighed into his shoulder. "Fern!" she called merrily, spotting her petite friend coming the opposite direction. "What are you doing out here?"

"Bulla!" the teen greeted with equal enthusiasm before sparing a smile for the man on Bulla's right. "General Turles," she added bashfully. "I was just on my way to the school. I used to cook for them a few days a week before I was assigned to the Kaiser's ship, so I wanted to see how they're all doing."

"You got to work with those cuties?" Bulla wriggled. "I want to learn all of their names- Oh, where are my manners," she interrupted herself and gestured between the two girls. "Pan, this is my friend Fern. Fern, this is Pan - Goten's niece."

While the two exchanged polite greetings, Turles let out another groan. "I've had enough of this."

"But there's still so much to seee!" Bulla whined, pulling on his wrist with both hands while he dragged her along the dirt.

"There's the tavern." He pointed to a large circular building a hundred or so metres ahead and she released her grip. "That's all anyone really needs to know." As if to drive the point home, he began making his way there himself, tail unravelling and flicking behind him.

* * *

_Leaning his back against the control panel with folded arms, Trunks chuckled at the antics in front of him. "Cinna," he called, catching her attention. He pointed towards a supply closet and earned himself a wink from the lively Saiyan before she stalked over and pounced._

_Trunks burst into laughter at the look of surprise on her face once she glanced back at him after coming up empty-handed._

" _You tricked me, pretty boy!" she scowled in disapproval._

" _You shouldn't be relying on me." He tapped a finger to his temple. "Tap into your senses, remember?"_

" _Yeah, yeah," she grumbled dismissively, rolling her eyes when Nappa stepped out of his hiding place on the opposite end of the room. "It's harder than you make it look."_

_Suddenly, the room started flashing red in strobing rhythm. Trunks twisted around, watching the main computer for details._ Incoming ship?  _he read._ Who in their right mind would take on a Saiyan fleet?

" _Nappa," Cinna's voice was in full command mode while she strode towards him. "Ready the autocannon."_

" _Hold on," Trunks muttered, fiddling with a few dials while he squinted at the grainy video stream. After zooming in and waiting for the image to clear, he jumped up._ " _ **Wait!"**_ _He dashed for the bald-headed General and shoved him out of the way, almost sending him to the floor._

" _What are you doing, boy," Nappa growled, eyeing him in annoyance._

" _Trunks." Cinna marched over, jaw clenched. "What do you think you're doing, interfering with a direct order."_

" _Don't attack." He was still at the control panel, attempting to silence the warning system. "How do I engage communication with an outside vessel?" Clear eyes scanned the many buttons in front of him, but now was not the time for guesswork. One misclick and he could end the life of whoever was approaching._

_An automated message came through. "Foreign ship requesting entry," it said on repeat._

" _How do I say yes?" Trunks demanded, looking to the ship's head._

" _Who do you think we are?" Cinna chided, fangs showing while she glared at the lavender-haired halfling. "This isn't a social occasion, half-breed."_

" _ **LOOK!"**_ _Trunks pressed his finger to the screen so abruptly, it bent almost ninety degrees at the final joint. "See that logo?" She glanced down, cocking an eyebrow. "That's from earth, my company!" He jabbed his thumb to his breastbone. "Whoever this is, I probably know them! Now open the fucking door."_

_With a defiant snarl, Cinna slammed her fist to one of the buttons, keeping her harsh gaze on the earthling._

" _Thank you," he breathed before racing down the hallway towards the airlock._

_Once inside, his heart burst at the sight of one of his prized ships,_ the Hummingbird,  _he gasped._ Fastest damn vessel we ever built.  _It felt like a lifetime since he'd thought about spec sheets and vehicle designs. Slowly, he made his way closer. In the next split second Trunks picked up the energy that lurked inside and watched as the pod hissed, doors opening with painstaking steadiness._

_He shook his head as he grinned from ear to ear._ This motherfucker.

_A single orange and black boot stepped out, revealing a pair of CC-issue utility pants along with it. Slim fingers gripped the door frame, nails painted and mostly chipped. The leg straightened and out came a short-haired quarterling with danger in her eye._

" _Miss me?" she smiled coyly, not even skipping a beat. Without a second thought, he dashed forward and scooped her up, embracing her stomach while she laughed at his greeting. "I'll take that as a yes?"_

" _Pan you nut!" He grabbed both shoulders once he set her back on her feet. "What are you doing out here? And alone, too? Are you crazy!"_

" _I came looking for you!" she beamed, evidently proud of herself. "And whaddya know." Pan pointed her palms to the ceiling and spun around. "Am I good, or what?"_

" _I can't believe what I'm seeing," he answered, genuinely gobsmacked. "How-?"_

" _So, I can't wait to fill you in, and I love reunions as much as the next girl," she began, rubbing her palm over her bare arms. "But the sanitation system in your space pod really leaves a lot to be desired."_

_Trunks could only beam at the hybrid in front of him, flippant and independent as ever._

" _So tell me," she added, surveying the barren room. "You guys got any showers around here?"_

* * *

Bulla winced briefly when her back rammed into the door handle, but soon relished the feeling. Pain was good, especially now. It meant it would keep her focus on other things.

"I can smell him all over you," Raditz growled into her neck as he slipped his hands under her armour and peeled it past her head. Bulla said nothing as she did the same to him, pawing at his collar, desperate to find bare skin. Tearing his suit from the apex down, she raked her fingers over his chiselled torso, shivers passing through when she reached the extensive scar that marred his core. Leaning her forehead against his breastbone she took a moment to feel his heat before lowering, bending at the knees and planting a kiss on the permanently discoloured flesh.

He cupped her face with both hands while he glanced down. Their eyes locked for a few heartbeats before he persuaded her back up and married their mouths, large hands burying themselves in her silky locks.

Wrapping her legs around his waist, he carried her to his four-post bed, laying her on a pile of soft blankets as she gazed up at him dreamily, her mind finally millions of miles away. She squirmed and arched as his mouth trailed the skin at her collar, not leaving an inch unexplored.

_This will be one of the last,_ Bulla noted with an unexpected pang while his hand glided down her side, broad and callused. Her skin scorched he dragged it back up her stomach, the tips of his fingers grazing her the sides of breasts on his way to her neck, resting at her throat before leaning in hovering his mouth over hers.

"Bulla!"

The heiress was brought out of her haze when she heard Pan's voice in the street outside his window.

"Ignore her," Raditz breathed, stealing a kiss.

"Where the heck is she?" the quarterling whinged. "People say they saw her around here not too long ago."

"Maybe she's with Fern."

Bulla froze when she heard Goten with her, silently thanking her hard-case father for the gift of ki control.

"We ran into her earlier, I don't see why she'd go back," Pan countered with a sigh. "Why can't I sense her?"

" _I should probably go,"_ Bulla whispered. It was risky enough being around the Kaiser while three of her fellow earthlings occupied the same breathing space, let alone hovered right outside his house. " _I'm supposed to call home soon and I guess they're ready now."_

"Later," he rasped, planting a trail of soft kisses down her chest.

She shimmied out from under him, earning herself a groan of disapproval as he sunk into his mattress, wiping his tail along her belly while she pushed herself up.  _Thank God he didn't break this one,_  she let out a breath as she picked her skinsuit up from the floor.

"Where's your bathroom?" she asked, swivelling to face him. With one eye open, he pointed out his door and she tiptoed through, clutching her clothes to her body while she slipped into an adjacent room.

After closing the door behind her, she took in the humble space, quietly marvelling at the fact that even their great leader lived amongst the everyday working people. His home was only marginally more impressive than the others she'd seen. Two storeys instead of one with large porcelain tile floors in various earth tones like beige and orange. His bathroom was equally simple, not even a soap bar at the sink.

_I wonder how much time he even spends here?_

After her shower, she followed his energy to the living area, taking a moment to watch him from the archway while he sat at his sofa and read through what she presumed to be reports or memos of some kind.

"Are you ever off the clock, Kaiser?" She wandered towards him and he tossed the stack to the table in front of him, offering her a rare, but faint, smile.

"More than I should be lately." He reached for her arm and pulled her towards him. "What do you think of Crest?"

She tilted her head at the question.  _Raditz, making conversation?_ She could barely mask her surprise.  _I must be imagining things._

"I like it," she answered with a playful smirk. "Despite being inhabited by people like you." Bulla pressed her finger to his cheek. "It's actually kind of sweet."

"Sweet?" he repeated doubtfully, though he didn't seem too disapproving of her answer, as the corner of his mouth pulled a touch higher. Absentmindedly, she pressed her thumb to his lips and caressed the soft skin while he held his hands to her back.

_Why don't you smile more?_ she pondered, the ends of her eyes dropping.  _You look like a Son when you smile._ "Yes," Bulla spoke out loud, bending at the hip to line up their faces before offering a quick peck. "Shocking, I know."

She looked back towards the passage, hair swaying long and low beneath her, "I guess I'll see you later."

As she pulled away, Bulla felt a hand wrap around her wrist and when she turned back around, she was struck by a pair of lips pressing into her own.

With a girlish giggle she pushed him off,  _I guess he's missed me these past couple of days?_  and headed into his kitchen, exiting through the back door. After waiting in the alley a few moments and establishing that the coast was clear, Bulla stepped out in search of Pan's energy signature.

* * *

" _Look what I found!" Pan exclaimed, pearly whites glistening while she sat crammed up in her one-man pod._

" _ **Ahhh!"**_ _Trunks_   _heard_   _his mother's scream fill the tiny space when he squashed his cheek against the quarterling's, attempting to fit into the camera's narrow view. "My boy, my perfect, beautiful boy," Bulma wailed, hugging the screen._

" _Hey mom," he greeted with an easy smile. "Good to see you again."_

" _Trunks, I've been out of my mind worrying about you three," she breathed into her hands. "I can't believe I'm looking at you right now. What happened? Why aren't you on the Odyssey? How are you? How are Bulla and Goten?"_

Yep,  _he nodded._  That's my mother,

_As the rest of her questions sank in, he realised he'd need to bend the truth a little to save her any further strain. He knew her capacity for stress was minimal these days and there was no point in letting her worry even more. If he just came out and said, "Well, actually the three of us were assaulted and taken against our will. I haven't spoken to Bulla or Goten in over a month, but I'm told they're fine - ha ha." He suspected she'd shove his father into the nearest vessel and demand he bring them all home. Trunks didn't want to have to tell her that he wasn't ready for that yet._

" _Yeah," he forced a laugh. "We ended up running into some Saiyans on Advent. Long story. Unfortunately, we kind of lost track of our ship, so I haven't had any way of contacting you to let you know that we're all ok."_

" _You lost your spaceship?" she questioned, evidently already beginning to doubt his summarised version of events. "How on earth did you do that? We have back up measures for that sort of thing. You know that."_

" _Yeah, I do know," he placated. "It's another long story that I'd rather not go into, but don't worry. Our new friends have promised to organise a few rides for us once we reach their base. How's everything back home?"_

_He watched as his mother let out a weighty exhale. Hopefully, this signalled the last of her concerns exiting her ageing body. She relayed a few amusing tales, including numerous dinners with the Sons, the usual mishaps around the house, etcetera etcetera and informed him that he'd received a sizeable offer on his West City apartment. Though she didn't feel comfortable confirming the sale without his word._

" _Do it," he shrugged. It had been so long since the place was his own personal space, not an ounce of sentimentality remained. When she brought up the company, however, he was surprised at how little he actually cared to hear. For the first stretch of their journey, he could barely get through an hour of the day without thinking of his precious empire, living for any updates he could squeeze out of his mother before she lectured him about shutting off that part of his brain. Four weeks cold turkey was one hell of a way to break the mental cycle, as now he could feel himself zoning out while she went into detail about recent meetings and upcoming developments._

" _Is dad around?" he asked when she took a breath._

" _Not right now," Bulma smiled. "But I'm sure he'll be glad to hear you're all safe, even if he won't say it out loud."_

" _Can you get him to call me when he gets back?" Trunks couldn't remember the last time he was disappointed to miss out on seeing his father. "We have to head off and reserve some dinner before it's all gone, so I have to say goodbye."_

" _Goodbye Trunks," Bulma waved, glassy-eyed. "Please get your sister and Goten to call home when you meet up with them. I love you!"_

" _Will do and love you too mom."_

_A warmth washed through him as the connection ended. It was relief seeing his mother, and being able to ease the fear he knew would have been building once she realised the hybrids weren't touching base._

_As he had so many times since waking on this ship, he thought of his father, as well as his own many squandered years chasing a human existence while he stubbornly repressed the other half of his heritage. Still sat in the tiny spacepod, he acknowledged the depth to which he finally understood Vegeta's character._ I know now why you're so proud to be Saiyan,  _Trunks noted with an ounce of remorse._ And I am too.

* * *

"What took you so long?" Pan scolded, crossing her arms while she bore into the heiress. "We couldn't find you anywhere." The three hybrids were standing in a sparse clearing a fair way away from the town, providing themselves with some privacy for their call home.

Bulla offered nothing more than a sheepish shrug, apparently catching her friend in the right moment because she soon dropped her hands and said, "Whatever. It's a bit of a tight squeeze for two." Pan held her hand to the pea-shaped ship's fold-down door, "But you guys can figure it out," and promptly swivelled around, leaving them to their eardrum-destroying reunion in peace.

"You should probably head in first," Bulla suggested, looking to the older hybrid.

Goten nodded, ducking his head as he slid in and leaned his back into the curved seat. "Okay, come on in," he voiced, keeping his legs spread and boots planted while he pat the space in front of him.

Bulla poked her head inside. "How the heck did Trunks and Pan both fit in here?" she frowned.

"It's amazing what people can do when they don't have a personal bubble the size of a small country," he ribbed, earning himself a look. "Come on," he grinned. "Let's get this over with."

With mild trepidation, Bulla eased herself into the pod, feeling his hand guiding her as she attempted to find the right position. "Just sit!" he laughed, placing his palms on her sides and pulling down.

With an  _oof,_ Bulla landed on the velvet seat, back pressed right up against his chest plate while her hips brushed the inside of his thighs.  _Well, this is certainly… intimate._  Instinctively, she kept enough room from his crotch, mortified at the thought of drifting off and thinking about his genitals while she was meant to be having a conversation with her parents.

"Ready?" he asked, leaning forward to reach the touch-screen while he held one hand to her waist.

"Mhm," she nodded.

After a few rings, the video connected and four wonderfully familiar faces greeted them on the other side.

"Mommy!" Bulla bounced, almost lurching right out of her seat.

"Goten!" Chi-chi's nose filled the stream, causing both halflings to snigger. "Goten, my sweet boy. Oh, you're okay," she sang.

She was violently ripped from view as Bulma dug her nails into her shoulder. "Both of us have kids out there Chi-Chi!" she scolded. "Have a little consideration."

"Hi Bulma," Goten smiled. "Vegeta. Hey dad."

"Goten have you gotten hurt at all?" Chi-Chi returned, bopping Bulma away with her hip. "I kept telling your father to use his instant transmission but he said you were too far away to sense. If you've been hurt at all and he was just making excuses so that he wouldn't miss out on training, tell me."

Bulla could see Goku grimacing is the background, hair standing on end like a spooked cat.

"I'm good, mom," Goten soothed. "I'm sure Pan's told you, Saiyans know how to keep themselves well fed and in fighting shape."

"What about you, Bulla?" Bulma shoved herself into frame. "How's my baby girl? Have those nasty Saiyans been good to you? Tell me the truth! I know what they're like when they're untamed." She folded her arms with a huff.

"Uh…" Bulla stammered.

"Bulma, you'd be so proud of her," Goten interjected cheerfully, giving the heiress a brief squeeze. "She's got them all on her beck and call. Even the top dog."

"Hah!" Bulla heard Vegeta bark amongst all the motherly excitement. "Of course she does. She's their princess."

"Bulla, honey. Are you feeling okay though?" Bulma eyed her daughter doubtfully. "Your skin looks a little flushed. Are you coming down with something?"

"No, no," Bulla laughed, trying to get a handle on her jitters. She scooted in her seat, attempting to relieve some of the source of her jumpy nerves. "It's kinda warm here is all." She fanned her face, unaware of how much she had been giving herself away. "It's only our first day, so it will take a little getting used to I think."

"Bulla." Vegeta rose from his post in the background, approaching the camera with folded arms. "Your brother tells me the Saiyans you've been travelling with are the very same who inhabited Planet Vegeta before Frieza turned it to dust."

"That's true, daddy," she affirmed.

"They've been revived with the Namekian dragon balls," he added calmly.

She couldn't tell if he was asking or telling, so she simply nodded.

"Should we expect a visit from them in the near future? It seems you're the one closest to the top of the chain."

"No." She shook her head. "They're building a new life here on Crest. I don't think they care what their old prince is up to."

"You're sure?"

"Very," Bulla assured. "They love their new leader and he's got his sights set ahead."

"Who is their new leader?" Vegeta queried, apparently more inquisitive about his fellow warriors than he initially let on.

"Trunks didn't tell you?" She tilted her head.

"Trunks didn't know. He claimed he hadn't met him yet, but you had."

Bulla hesitated. "His name is Raditz," she answered cautiously, immediately watching for even the tiniest of shifts in his expression.

What started as shock evolved into disbelief until he loosened his arms and erupted into deafening, true-blue Saiyan laughter. He clutched his belly while he roared to the ceiling, eventually bringing his hand his face and dragging down. "They're all doomed," he exhaled, wiping a tear.

"Raditz?" Bulma repeated. "Goku's brother, Raditz? The one who took Gohan and-"

"Got my Goku killed!" Chi-Chi cried.

Bulla wanted to slither right out of the door and disappear into the forest behind them.

"I don't know what he was like back then," Goten spoke up when Bulla seemed incapable of adding to the conversation. "But he's an alright guy from what I've seen so far. His head's screwed on and he's strong as hell."

"Unlikely," Vegeta scoffed. "Raditz is easily the most pathetic Saiyan I ever had the displeasure of working with. He wasn't worth the hair on his head."

"Daddy!" Bulla interjected, glaring disapprovingly at his two-dimensional image. "That's horrible, take it back."

"I will not." He was still laughing. "I knew it would be a waste of time going out there. If that nothing is in charge I imagine they'll all become wishes again within the year."

"That's not true!" she argued, balling her fists. "He's been at it for two years already and the Saiyans are going from strength to strength. He's clever and careful and-"

"Vegeta, stop antagonising her," Bulma berated, swatting at her husband's face. "People change." She gave him a pointed look before returning her attention to the video feed. "Bulla, sweetheart, it's really late here. We've been waiting all day to hear from you two but I think it's better we talk in the morning. I'm off work for the next few days so I'm always just a phone call away, alright? Call me as soon as you wake up tomorrow. I'm so glad to see both of you are alright."

"Okay," Bulla exhaled, reeling her temper back. "Bye, everyone." The two hybrids waved at the three happy faces and one entirely dispassionate one. "And that includes you, daddy."

He raised two fingers and earned himself an involuntary lip twitch from his daughter before the connection ended.

"Well," Goten let out a breath. "That went…"

"Exactly as we could have expected, I guess," Bulla finished for him with a half-smile. "I love the man but God, I forgot what a jerk he is sometimes."

Goten dragged his palms along the tops of his thighs. "That stuff you said about my uncle," he began reluctantly. Suddenly, she was made re-aware of their overly cosy set up and felt her body begin to warm from the inside out. "Is it true?"

"What stuff?" she asked quietly, becoming distracted as she watched his hands out of the corner of her eye.

"About him being a good leader, clever and all that."

Bulla paused, thrown by the question. "Why?" She twisted around to face him, not realising just how close their heads already were until it was too late to double back. Immediately, her eyes fell to his mouth, lips parted while he formed his next sentence.

"I don't know," he responded, glancing through the open door. "I guess, I was just surprised to hear you talking about him like that. Especially how you went against your dad so passionately. Usually the two of you rail on people together."

"Yeah…" she uttered, entirely fixated on his bottom lip, and unsure what to do with her hand while it squished between her right hip and his left leg. "I'm slowly learning that there's a bit of history between the two of them. I don't know the details but-" She cut herself off when she glanced up, spying fiery black eyes watching her own mouth as she spoke. Nylon stretched under her fingers as they pressed into his inner thigh and she peered down, drawing in a silent breath when she confirmed the cause.

_Oh,_ she gulped, wide eyes growing wider.  _Oh..._

She knew she shouldn't, but Bulla couldn't stop her fingers inching inward along the fabric. Neither dared to take a breath until Goten let out a restrained groan when she reached stiff muscle.

Fiery fingertips found their way to her legs, dotting up her bodysuit before gliding over her hips and slipping up her back.

Slowly, he narrowed the already slim gap between their faces until their noses interlocked and warm breath skated over damp skin, sending shivers all through her. Her hand was still pressed to his crotch, pressure only building as he pulled her closer.

When she felt her lips crush, Bulla allowed herself a fleeting moment of pleasure before tearing away and covering her mouth with her hands.

Closing her eyes, she shook her head. " _I can't-"_

_I can't do this to him._

Breaking out of Goten's grip, Bulla grabbed the door frame and hauled herself out, still lost in a daze as she tried to find her footing.

She began making her way towards the town centre when she heard Goten's voice behind her.

"Bulla," he called out, standing near the pod when she twisted back around. She looked to his face, immediately noting sunken eyes and downturned lips. "It's true isn't it."

Her heart ripped as understanding sank into his light features.

She turned away, unable to continue watching the defeat spread across his face, and dragged her feet along the dirt road, tripping on a small rock and almost losing her balance.

Burying her face in her hands, Bulla let out a choked sob before sliding her fingers through her hair and squeezing at the strands.

_What the hell have I done?_


	22. SUPPLEMENTAL - Born Again

Heavy lids drifted open, vision yet blurry.  _Argh._ Instinctively, he brought his forearm to his eyes when bright daylight threatened to burn his retinas. He felt dirt beneath his left palm, packed and dry, and soon registered soft bird song in the light breeze that rolled through.  _Where am I?_

Once his eyes adjusted, he glanced down. There was a stark, gaping hole right in the centre of his armour.  _What the-?_ As he brought a hand to feel the blemished skin, he felt a distant pull. Desperately digging his fingers into the soil, he was suddenly sucked into nothingness before finding himself spat out in a land even greener than the last.

_What the hell is going on?_

He heard voices and quickly jumped to his feet, fingertips flexing in the grass while he readied himself for attack. Dark orbs darted as he took in his new surroundings.  _Th- This can't be_. All around him, as far as his keen eye could see, were people just like him. Men, women, children.

Saiyans.

And they appeared just as disoriented as he was.

After straightening to his full height, he began nudging his way through the heavy crowd, attempting to make sense of the situation.

 _What was I doing before this?_ he asked himself, still feeling entirely lost.  _The boy!_ he suddenly remembered. The little half-breed brat came bursting out of his space pod and managed to damage his goddamn armour _! No wait, that was earlier…_

He continued to dig through his memories.  _Why is this so difficult?_ Suddenly, he spotted spiky, black hair pointing all directions and, immediately, everything came flooding back.  _Kakarot!_ He threw himself at the warrior, sending him to the ground while he gripped his neck, tail thrashing wildly behind him.

He heard his opponent grunt before throwing a punch, sending his own head snapping.  _Since when was Kakarot this strong?_ His brain spun inside his skull while he attempted to regain a handle on the fight, blood already pouring out of his nose.

"Gah!" He suddenly found himself eating dirt while his body writhed involuntarily. In his peripheral vision, he realised Kakarot was doing the same.

"Settle down monkeys," a nearby voice spoke through what sounded like a mask of some kind. His body had stopped shaking, though he could still feel tremors trickling through every few seconds. "Behave yourselves if you don't want to end up six feet under again."

Twisting his face as far as he could, grass shoots scraping against his cheek, he noted someone standing over him - white from head to toe, including the full-face helmet.

"Look what you've just done you fucking moron," his brother spat, though he sounded different. "Way to get us noticed."

"Shut up!" another guard commanded, kicking Kakarot in the head.

"Now, now my dear Saiyans," an eerily smooth voice carried through the air. "I've just gone through so much trouble trying to bring you here, please don't go killing each other off already." Despite the calmness with which he spoke, it left Raditz entirely on edge. "I know it's a tall ask for a race as bloodthirsty as you, but save it for the battlefield field. You'll get your chance to fight, don't you worry."

Everyone was staring to the right, rumblings beginning to grow louder. He heard whispers of Frieza, but obviously these folk weren't nearly familiar enough with the filthy lizard.  _Whoever this is, he's definitely not Frieza._

"On your feet," the soldier behind him instructed, shoving his leg with his boot.

Cautiously, he did as he was told, inadvertently making eye contact with his earlier adversary as he did so.  _He looks like Kakarot,_ he assessed.  _But he's wearing armour instead of that ridiculous orange jumpsuit._

"Try anything funny again," the guard warned, taking a step back. "And I won't hesitate to fry you."

 _So he can't fight me without his gadgets?_ Raditz weighed.  _Good to know._ Casting his gaze along with everyone else's, he found the face that accompanied the voice from earlier. This creature was short, perhaps like Frieza indeed, but an immaculate glossy white with delicate features - spindly limbs and fingers, a slim, lithe body and eyes as clear as sub-zero water.

"Now I'm sure many of you are wondering what has happened. How you went from burning to a crisp a few minutes before to standing on this gorgeous planet with me here today." He floated over the crowd, assaulting Raditz' eyes yet again when light reflected off his chrome-like skin. "Well let me be the one to inform you: that wasn't a few minutes ago." A smile appeared on his unnaturally pristine face. "Decades have passed and the one responsible for your genocide has lost his rule."

 _Genocide?_ Raditz reared, watching the others for their reaction to such a comment, though all they did was cheer.

"Yes, it's true," Sibe continued with a nod. "Frieza allowed his arrogance to knock him off his seat. He made many an error as his tyranny approached its end, not least of which was ridding the galaxy of  _you_  wonderful men and women.

The more this guy spoke, the more certain Raditz became that he needed to proceed with caution.

"I've done my homework," he added with a saccharine lilt. "And have been for years. I know how valuable each and every one of you is, so as I stand before you as the new intergalactic emperor, fear not for a repeat of history."

 _There it is,_ Raditz clenched his fist.  _Frieza by another face and title._

"I have many names." The fragile looking alien cast his empty gaze over the Saiyan people. "But you may all refer to me as Sibe, or if you prefer, Saviour."

"What a fucking delusional piece of narcissistic shit," Raditz heard his brother mutter, causing him to eye him sceptically.

_What happened to that foolish, soft-heart?_

He watched as the warrior fell back to the ground, limbs spasming once more as he groaned into the dirt, tail unravelling at the same time.

_And I thought Kakarot lost his tail?_

"Watch what you say about the Saviour," a guard threatened before ceasing his punishment, allowing him to return to standing. "He just gave you life. Respect and devotion are all that need to come out of your mouth."

"Hah," Kakarot barked in response. "For that nematode?"

"And what seems to be the problem here?" Sibe floated over, lowering himself to the ground between the two with the grace of a swan. "Tell me, Saiyans, what are your names?"

The two warriors, warring but a few minutes before, exchanged heated glances but said nothing.

"Come now." He lifted his nose. "I want to know each of my subjects personally and you two seem as good a place to start as any."

"I go by Turles," the other finally answered, giving the taller Saiyan pause.

 _Turles?_  He glared at his brother's doppelganger in disbelief.  _The exile,_ he recalled.  _So I'm finally meeting this slippery bastard._

Sibe nodded in approval before rolling his head to meet Raditz' gaze. "And you, dear one?"

The long-haired Saiyan felt cool metal press to the exposed skin on his back where the armour had been blasted away by that damn Namekian. "Raditz."

"Oh goodness." Sibe brought his hands together, "Isn't this a treat?" and looked between the pair in glee. "Two of my earth-killed subjects. I knew it wouldn't be a wasted wish bringing you three to me. Look at you both." He gestured to each one with a chuffed grin. "Already roaring to go. Speaking of which, where is my third?" He pivoted on his pointy white boot. "Where is the one known as Nappa?" he called as he levitated above the others.

 _Nappa?!_ Raditz recoiled at hearing his squadmate's name.  _He's here too? In that case,_ he realised _. Vegeta can't be far either._ Keen eyes scanned over the crowd, seeking the iconic flame-hair.

He caught movement in his periphery and twisted to see a bald-headed warrior rise above the rest. "I'm Nappa," the giant announced, eyes narrowed.

"Beautiful." Sibe pressed his palms to his breastbone, sighing in pleasure. "I'm so delighted to see you three made it. Every last Saiyan counts, especially when they're as powerful as you."

"What is the meaning of this?"

Raditz turned his head to the new voice, gruff and authoritative, and immediately spotted a flapping red cape attached to a solid, imposing body.

 _The king!_ he silently gasped.

"King Vegeta," Sibe gushed, delicate fingers interlocking while he cast an almost awed gaze to the royal. "There's a man who needs no introduction. My, aren't you a regal fellow."

"Enough of your flowery speak," the king spat, lifting his nose and crossing his arms.

_Gods, the resemblance is astounding._

"Explain what's going on and why we're here." Vegeta threw out his arm at the surrounds, the bulky heirloom around his neck rattling at the motion. "Wherever this place is."

"Of course," the angelic alien softly nodded, showing no sign of offence at his forthright tone. "Welcome to planet Namek, my friends. You've all been spared an eternity in the great void thanks to yours truly." He brought his right hand to his chest and bowed, silver hair remaining stiff on his scalp. "With the help of some magical orbs."

"For what purpose," Vegeta demanded, fist tightened.

"Later, later dear king," Sibe placated, cupping the face of a young boy as he gazed affectionately at the group of Saiyans around him. "For now, let's all acquaint ourselves, shall we? I've so been looking forward to this moment."

" _Fuck this,_ " Raditz heard Turles mutter under his breath before taking to the sky. One of the earlier guards attempted to interrupt him, but the notorious outlaw Saiyan was too fast for his prod handling skills and fired a ki ball right through the man's stomach before he even had a chance to reach the button.

This was the only catalyst the rest of the Saiyans needed before all mayhem broke loose and the other handful of armoured guards were engulfed by legions of roaring warriors. As Raditz watched the carnage around him unfold, he felt a palm on his shoulder and swiftly spun around, ready to throw a pre-emptive swing.

Breath catching, his fist stopped inches shy of a face he hadn't seen since his earliest memories.  _Father._

Bardock stared back at him, calm and quiet and the two exchanged a silent glance. Rolling his gaze right, Raditz felt the faintest twisting of an organ he'd long thought dead.

"Look at you." His mother's gentle voice reached his ears as she lightly pressed her doll-like hands to each side of his face. "You've grown so tall, and so strong." Her eyes were shimmering and Raditz had to force a suddenly dry swallow. " _My boy,"_ she whispered.

All three looked to the sky when a strange hiss filled the air. His body instantly felt heavy and he attempted to shake it off, but he couldn't even keep his eyes open. The last thing Raditz remembered was seeing his mother pressed to Bardock's armour, burying her face in his chest plate while his father wrapped one arm around her shoulders and held the other out in front of him, ki ball at the ready.

* * *

Something hard and cold collided with the back of his head as he waited in line to be served his dinner, soon hearing the clang of a metal tray hitting the ground. From the cafeteria floor, he spotted Turles' face just before seeing stars as a heavy fist met his nose. In the next moment, there was a body on top of him and the two found themselves in another dirty scuffle.

Each one let out restrained grunts as they traded blows. "I could kill you in an instant," Turles snarled, teeth gritted while he held his hands to the taller Saiyan's neck.

"Then why haven't you?" Raditz seethed right back, kneeing him in the stomach and flinging him off. "Reject."

Both men suddenly found themselves hovering off the ground, frozen in position. It felt like he was tethered by invisible ropes while he flailed above the tables.

"You two again?" Sibe chastised as he floated in, arms clasped behind his back while he looked between them, expression decidedly less affectionate than earlier. "My, it seems there's a bit of bad blood amongst you Saiyans after all. Pray tell - what seems to be the problem?"

While Raditz and Turles exchanged equally murderous glares, both remained quiet.

"Not the most loquacious people, are you?" Sibe commented to himself, tilting his head in consideration of the duo. "I hear you tend to speak with your bodies instead."

As he silently padded back through the exit, the two combative Saiyans were hauled along, still unable to regain control of their own movement. "I'm nothing if not patient," he continued, walking down the hallway towards the exit. "But you two are beginning to test me. It simply will not do having such disobedient pets. You need a lesson in cooperation it seems." He came to a sudden stop and threw a pointed look to the shorter of the two fighters. "Was earlier not enough, my dear Turles?"

Raditz glanced to his fellow warrior.  _What is he talking about?_ The only response was a pulsing vein along Turles' neck while he bored into the delicate alien.

"Such disdain." Sibe shook his head. "This is for your own good, my children. Now come." He spun back around and continued walking. "Let me show you some toys that can be used for channelling those frustrations of yours. I want you all up and at 'em as soon as possible."

* * *

With crossed arms, Raditz watched through thick glass the match between Nappa and the resurrected king. Beads of sweat dripped down his ex-squadmate's head, breath growing ragged while he waited in a slight crouch. Despite their extensive history, the particular sorting of squads at Sibe's base meant he barely had the opportunity to cross paths with the gargantuan Saiyan. He suspected Nappa wasn't all that disappointed, however.  _He was always such a sucker for the prince,_ he scoffed to himself _. That sycophant must be endlessly pleased he's been grouped with the king._

Proceeding down to the next training cubicle, he found his father, firing rapid blasts at pre-programmed drones before sprinting back along the floor and spinning on his heel to dash the opposite direction. There must have been at least fifteen hand-sized bots after him while he alternated been evading and attacking directly.

Raditz considered joining him before his thoughts were interrupted.

"Such a beautiful sight, watching you Saiyans train," Sibe lilted cheerily from Raditz' rear, arms wide while he regarded the relentless warriors. "Tireless workers, your strength continues to grow each day. Frieza really was a fool for destroying Planet Vegeta." Raditz tried to ignore him, keeping his gaze on his father, but he felt his neck twisting against his will. "It's rude to look away when someone speaks with you, dear Raditz," he chastised, lips pursing while he looked down his nose at the stiffened warrior.

Teeth gritted, Raditz let out a low growl.

"You don't like when I do that?" Sibe taunted, expression growing harder. "Forget not who gave you life and keeps you sheltered and fed, pet."

Raditz felt his knees beginning to buckle,  _No!_ And pushed against it, legs shaking as the veins all through his body began to pulse along the surface of his skin. Head tilting downward, his eyes caught small white boots hovering off the ground right in front of him.

"I own you," the overlord rumbled above him, voice now low and threatening. "And I own that body of yours too. Now stop resisting and kneel."

"I kneel for no one," Raditz snarled, every muscle quivering before catching himself on his outstretched hand and digging into the balls of his feet.

"We both know that isn't true, Raditz," Sibe patronized with a click of his tongue. "I can make you do whatever I want." He lightly rested his palm to the top of the Saiyan's head and a sudden jolt coursed right down Raditz' spine. Before he knew it, he was on all fours. "That is the beauty of power.

Frieza was right to question the heights of your limits," he continued smoothly, rolling his hand down the side of Raditz' face and tilting up at the chin. "But he was foolish to think any of you could ever yield true power. Even your king is a joke." He narrowed his eyes, peeling his attention off the man before him and setting them somewhere further behind.

Suddenly, Raditz heard a choked wheeze and turned his head - now free to do so - spotting King Vegeta clutching at his neck while his face burned red. Nappa stared at the duo outside the glass chamber. There was nothing anyone could do when he got like this.

"Remember how easily I can end all of your lives, little one," he concluded, Vegeta falling to the floor in a coughing fit as the telekinetic grip released.

"I thought you don't like getting your hands dirty," Raditz grumbled, pushing himself back to standing.

"That's what I have you lovelies for." Sibe smiled, returning his hands to rest behind his back, demeanour reverting, sweet as honey.

* * *

Palms to the dirt, Raditz blinked, vision slowly clearing as he gazed upon the small red puddle below him, a stomach-curdling mixture of blood, spit and sweat. He almost toppled when he rose to his feet, struggling to keep his balance as he drifted in and out of consciousness. Every muscle in his neck ached as he twisted it to face his opponent.

Turles held his fists up, bouncing sluggishly on his feet, but Raditz could tell he was finished. His eyes were vacant, entirely glossed over. All it would take was one more and he'd…

The long-haired Saiyan stumbled as he threw his shoulder into Turles middle sending both to the ground with an exhausted groan. Neither moved. Neither  _could_ move. So they didn't, each slipping into the sweet release of nothingness as their eyes closed.

When he regained consciousness, it was pitch black, the light from the stars barely sneaking through the dense forest.

He felt soft hands on his back.

"Look at what you're doing to yourselves," he heard his mother's whispered cry as she ducked under his shoulder and lifted him to his feet. "You'll kill each other."

Turles woke too at the interruption, writhing on his back as his muscles undoubtedly screamed in agony. Raditz reached down and gripped, pulling him up and draping Turles arm over his shoulder before dragging both back towards the base.

"It's the only way, mother," he responded quietly as she watched after them, hands to her mouth.

When he eventually reached the infirmary, Raditz slumped his comrade against the door of one of the large glass vessels and configured the machine. Turles reached for his armour, attempting to undo one of the clasps before Raditz beat him to it, untying the carefully placed weights. He still had to marvel at the technology - how something so small could be so dense. Apply clusters of them all around your body and suddenly you're struggling to even stand straight, let alone throw a punch or win a fight.

Once he was finished, he opened the door and Turles shuffled inside with a groan while Raditz undid his own weights - slowly - before stepping into his tank. After placing his mask and pressing the inside button, his pod began filling with tepid ooze.

Casting a glance to the man on his right, he watched as Turles' hair swayed in the viscous liquid. He could see the warrior repressing a wince as he shifted around, attempting to get comfortable. Their gazes met and Turles offered a knowing nod.

_It's the only way._

* * *

"I would've died," Raditz murmured, hunched over on the hard bench, staring at the space between his soiled boots while his elbows dug into the tops of his thighs. Barely an inch of his body was free of bodily fluids, half of it not even his own. He stretched his fingers, cracking the crusted blood that had settled in the grooves of his joints. "Again."

Turles leaned his head against the wall, purple plasma smeared all across his face. "You can't die yet," he smirked. "Save that for after we kill that sociopath." He clapped his hand to Raditz' shoulder. "You can save  _my_  ass next time."

Both turned their heads when they heard footsteps coming down the hallway.

"Look who it is," Turles rasped, smirk only growing. "Our favourite."

"Your favourite," the taller Saiyan mumbled, averting his gaze.

"Don't pretend you don't want to see what's under that medic outfit," Turles persisted, drinking in the alien doctor as she approached, his tail beginning to sway playfully.

 _Of course._ Raditz straightened once she came to a stop in front of them.

"My two favourite brothers," she smiled, lilac eyes lightly lifting at the corners as she turned to Raditz. "I'll see to you first, you seem to be the more urgent patient this time around."

With heavy limbs, he pushed himself up and followed her down the long passageway.  _Brothers?_ he mused, admittedly not  _entirely_  repulsed by the idea.  _Even after years with Vegeta and Nappa, and eventually meeting my actual blood brother,_  he considered.  _Turles really is the closest thing to a brother I've ever had._

"After you." She gestured to a door that opened to a small room and closed it behind her when he dragged himself in. "You know what to do."

With an exhale he sat at the end of the raised bed, light-headed though reluctant to admit it, and began peeling off what was left of his suit, letting it roll to his waist. He closed his eyes, allowing himself the brief moment of tranquillity that involved neither training nor warring as she got to work checking his vitals.

"I hear things got a little touch and go out there," she spoke softly, jotting down notes after taking his blood pressure.

He simply shrugged.

"We're not especially well equipped out here," she added with a sigh. "The regeneration tanks are working over time, and I fear we won't have enough fluid to service everyone before we get back to base if it carries on like this." She slipped off her gloves and tossed them aside. "There's talk of rationing use, so you can't go being all reckless out there."

"I'm never reckless," he stated seriously.  _I've learned my lesson._

"I know." Her gentle smile reappeared as she took a step back to regard him. Lowering her voice, she spoke once more. "But you and the others are the first glimmer we've had since he showed up. If you die, all hope dies with you."

He tightened his fist as he glanced to the wall, hardly needing the reminder. His skin prickled when he felt her hand against his bloodied cheek. "It would be a real shame to lose you," she whispered. Heat coursed through him when he noted how narrow the gap between their bodies had grown. A stiff white coat grazed against the inside of his thighs while clear orbs gazed upon him tenderly.

His eyes raked over her features in appreciation, taking in her deep-toned skin, full mouth, generous curves barely hidden by her matronly uniform.

Despite how exhausted he thought he felt, it seemed there was always energy in reserve. All too quickly he gained his second wind, hot blood coursing through.

But when she brought her face down to his, he instinctively snapped his head away and heard her breath catch.

"Are we done here?" he spoke brusquely, jaw clenching while his mind screamed at the squandered opportunity for release.

She walked over to her desk and quickly scribbled something down before passing him the slip of paper. "Take this down to room eight. They'll handle the rest." He dropped to his feet and reached out to take it from her. "This may be one of your last uses of the tank until we finish up."

Raditz nodded in understanding and headed for the door.

"Raditz," she called as he stepped through the threshold, causing him to hesitate. "When you get back out there, whatever you do, just stay alive. Please." After a pause, she added, "You can tell Turles I'm ready when he is."

Marching down the hallway, he could see his comrade resting his eyes while he leaned the back of his head into the wall. Turles lifted his lids, undoubtedly familiar with the sounds of his footsteps by now. "My turn?"

"She's all yours," Raditz responded coolly, heading for the regen suites.  _Tempting, but yours._

* * *

"Step behind the screen, please," a despondent tech spoke dully, prompting Raditz forward. He did as he was told and waited with bated breath while a scanner trailed down his body from head to toe.

"Increase. Two-thousand," the lizard-faced minion stated.

Raditz let out a breath and proceeded forward, waiting on the other side as Turles took his turn.

"Decrease... Six thousand." The tech paused, frowning at his screen in doubt

Raditz stiffened.  _Dammit, Turles. Too much!_

"Can you please step back out. I may need to recalibrate."

Turles complied, flexing his fingers and taking an inhale.

"Try again," the tech requested. Turles stepped forward, repeating the process. "Increase. Three thousand. Next."

Raditz exhaled silently, lids lowering in relief. When Turles strolled by, the taller Saiyan muttered under his breath, "That was too close. They'll notice anomalies if we get too sloppy too often."

"I know," Turles replied, voice low as they exited the medical wing and headed for the courtyard. "I haven't quite gotten the hang of it yet. Can't say suppressing my power was ever anything I thought I'd want to do."

"We have to be careful now that the gains are getting bigger," Raditz responded huskily. "Sibe is no Frieza, but it would be moronic to allow ourselves a repeat of last time."

He found his father outside with a handful of other Saiyans clustered around him while he spoke.

Nappa caught the duo's arrival and stepped away from the group. "How'd it go?"

"Fine," Raditz answered quietly, carefully taking in their surrounds. There was no telling what sort of surveillance could be active at any given moment. And Sibe's access to awe-striking technology never ceased to amaze. "They don't seem to be suspecting anything yet."

Nappa nodded as he crossed his arms and looked to Bardock. "The king is still ranked highest. No suspicion so far."

"Good," Raditz exhaled.  _So far we're all flying under the radar. Let's see how long we can keep this up._

* * *

Raditz could only shake his head at the sight in front of him, watching as Turles devoured some woman's neck while he had her pressed against the entrance wall.

 _This fool,_ he silently chastised.  _Anyone, anywhere, anytime._

He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned in surprise. He hadn't even noticed anyone approaching.

"Enjoying the show?" An impish grin greeted him.

"Cinna _,_ " he smirked, crossing his arms. "You're back."

"Indeed, Raditz." Her eyes glistened with mischief. "And I haven't returned empty-handed either." She glanced around before pulling him into a dark corner in the adjacent room. Slipping her fingers up the underside of the chest plate, she pulled out a small black device, about the size of her hand. "Look what managed to fall into my armour."

Cinna held out a compact tablet and Raditz took it from her curiously, turning it in his hand. "What is this?"

" _A copy of Sibe's itinerary for the next three months_ ," she whispered, upturned eyes pulling high.

His brows drew together in trepidation before looking back to the petite Saiyan before him. " _How did you get this?_ "

She waved the five digits of her right hand smugly. "Magic fingers, remember?"

"He'll notice it's missing," Raditz responded, a feeling of dread beginning to creep.  _We've been so careful! We can't lose it all now._

"Relax, Raditz," she laughed. "This isn't the original. I picked that up the last time I trawled one of those tech planets." Cinna gestured to the miniature tablet. "I slipped into his command room a few days ago between guard swaps and did my thing. He has no idea."

"Cinna," Raditz exhaled. "You're getting too risky. We can't afford for you to get caught. If he kills you-"

"Are you kidding?" she scoffed. "I'll be the last one of you fools to die." She clapped his arm as she turned to leave, offering a wink. "They'll have to find me first." Before slipping through the exit, Cinna added. "Give it to your father. He and Vegeta will figure out how best to use it."

He nodded before stepping out and heading back to the barrack entrance. Turles had since left.  _After how many others would have seen you,_  he grumbled. He heard footsteps behind him, light, probably female.  _Not Cinna._ Of that he could be certain - no one ever heard her coming.

He felt fingers swirling around his tail and twisted to see a familiar face.

"Hey," she offered a coy smile.

He eyed her for a few silent moments before uttering, "Upstairs." Eyes instinctively darted around the room to see if anyone had observed the interaction.

After a few minutes, Raditz followed.

* * *

As he sat on the edge of his mattress, moonlight pouring in through the window and onto his bare back, he found himself thinking of his old prince.

 _I finally get it._  He flexed his fist.  _I never thought I would ever see eye-to-eye with that infuriating piece of shit, but I get it_.

That unquenchable flame that urged him to push himself to his very limits and break every mental barrier along the way. The burning need to surpass his foes, lest he submit to life under someone else's boot.

In the back of his mind, Raditz registered her tail curling around his waist.

While he had resigned himself to the life of a lowly soldier before, the weakest of his Saiyan band, the dregs of Frieza's ranks and a flea on the radar of Frieza himself, Raditz could no longer keep himself content with such a future. Being granted a second chance forced him to acknowledge how deeply he valued his own life.

Glancing to the woman behind him, Raditz pondered the thousands of other Saiyans currently trawling through life at Sibe's base. Much to his own surprise, he found himself to be one of the most powerful among them. No longer a flea. No longer worthless.

If there was any hope of change, it rested on his shoulders, along with the small handful of others who quietly strived alongside him.

This time, he wouldn't just sit back and accept his fate as the killer dog of a sociopathic tyrant. This time-

He stared at his hands, seeing all new scars replace the old while fire raged inside him.

_This time things will be different._

* * *

_This is it_ , Turles realised as he drifted in and out of consciousness, slim fingers wrapped around his throat.  _At least I got him to kill me with his bare hands_. His own grip around Sibe's wrist loosened as he felt himself fade.

Suddenly, warm wet fluid splashed across his face and he instinctively took a sharp, desperate breath.

Before him, he saw a blood-covered hand plunging right through his adversary's ribcage. Within the sullied fingers was a purple heart, dripping with ooze and still beating.

What followed was a stomach-curdling scream, and clouded murmurings of denial.

Music to his ears.

The finger's clenched, sending green fluid bursting all across 'The Saviour's' immaculate white armour.

Behind the limp body, Turles caught the weathered expression of his closest ally, dead-eyed, soulless.

 _He did it_. Turles lowered his lids, a smile tugging at the ends of his mouth as he allowed himself to fall to the dirt below.

_We're free._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... A bit of a detour with this one, I admit. Yet another one of those 'Do I? Don't I?' chapters. There's a lot to potentially share in the world of Collide, and not everything ends up seeing daylight. This one managed to slip through by the skin of its teeth, so I hope that at least some of you found it to be worth adding to our story.
> 
> As always, thank you all for your continued support. The process is painstaking sometimes and the encouragement helps push us forward.


	23. III - Gravity

Absently, he reached his hand across the mattress, still in the twilight state of mind between waking and sleeping. Finding the second half empty, his eyes shot open before he repressed the unsettled ripple that was threatening to snake through and stared at the space she would have occupied if she was with him right now. Too easily, he could picture her, absurd-toned hair sprawled across his pillow while she slept serenely like he'd seen so many times before. This was the second morning that he'd woken up alone. And the second of many more to come.

Pushing into his hands, he looked to his bedroom window. An ease washed over him when he took in the early morning light - a welcome change from the norm. An image appeared in his mind's eye: strange blue-haired girl stomping before his General wearing a scowl so telling it practically screamed 'Vegeta', though he was too taken in by her striking appearance to make the connection. The weight behind her punch could have been another clue, but he was too focused on suppressing his arousal to think about his old prince.

Out of habit, Raditz rolled to his left, reaching for his scouter and glossing through one unheard message after the other. Routine updates from each of his sentinels. All clear.

He faltered when he came across an unexpected transmission from Turles.

" _Don't touch that!"_ he heard his General's voice, followed by a very familiar girlish giggle.

" _Oh come on, I just want to see how these things work,"_  Bulla placated.

Dark eyes tensed.  _When was this sent?_ He checked the time stamp.  _02:41._ Less than four hours ago _. She was still with him that long after they left the tavern together?_

" _Ah!"_ Bulla suddenly shrieked through the compact device. In the background, he could pick up shuffling and muffled groans.

" _Give it back,_ " Turles growled.

Soon, he heard running, along with panting and the occasional feminine snicker. " _Make me."_ Bulla's hard laughter came through seconds later, followed by a noisy scuffle. " _Get off me you boor._ "

More shuffling.

" _Gods you're impossible,"_  Turles groaned. " _Your attention span is worse than those welps you met earlier."_

" _Oh my God, they were so cute!"_ Bulla gushed, entirely overlooking the jab. " _Thanks for reminding me. Do you ever think about having kids one day?"_

" _Bulla!"_ the General roared _. "If we don't get back to my room in the next three seconds-"_

Raditz reared.  _This is at his house?_

" _Fine!"_ she relented with a sigh. " _Here."_

" _Gah, look what you've done,_ " Turles scolded before the transmission ended with a click.

All Raditz could do was balk in surprise. Bulla had foregone staying with him last night, but, by the sounds of it, had opted to spend a formidable chunk of her evening with Turles instead? And at his home no less.

He flexed his hand when he realised how heavily he'd been clenching his fist.

* * *

" _We'll be picking up more units on Soul in a week or so," Raditz informed the soldier before him while they stood in the centre of the hallway._

" _ **Get off me!"**_

_Instinctively, he snapped his head to Turles' door. He had just witnessed the newly discovered half-breed violently throwing the General into his own room. While admittedly curious, he'd decided to leave them to it._

_He hesitated at the cry, however, before turning back to look at his underling. They exchanged a glance before Raditz gestured for her to leave._

_The soldier spun on her boot, wordlessly heading down the passage while Raditz stepped to the private suite door, listening carefully for further indication of what could be happening on the other side. When he heard what sounded like more distressed moans, he turned the handle and threw it open._

_Dark orbs instantly fell to the hybrid beauty. She was on her back, pinned down by his General with rage in her eyes. Turles had a decidedly different look in his own while he hovered centimetres above her face, though it extinguished the instant he realised who'd entered._

_Raditz watched curiously as the two bickered._

" _The last thing I want is for people to think I'd jump into bed with someone like_ you!"

Now  _that's_ interesting,  _Raditz considered once she'd concluded her ranting. Despite all the evidence suggesting otherwise, it appeared she was not, in fact, fucking the notoriously lusty General._

_While she fumed silently, he steered her to his own suite._

In that case...

_With doubts of her relation to Kakarot, and therefore himself, quelled, along with confirmation that Turles hadn't staked his own claim on her, Raditz was free to act._

_So he did._

_Once she'd rid herself of his comrade's scent, Raditz wasted no time making his intentions clear._

This is the quietest I've ever seen her,  _he noted in amusement when he reached out to touch her cheek._ Perhaps I should have done this sooner.  _The telling odour of adrenaline began to creep, only igniting him further, teasing at a side of him long kept on leash._

 _That fiery temperament was nowhere to be seen as he leaned over her._ Is she playing with me?  _he wondered when he picked up her growing trepidation._ Or is she less experienced than I suspected?  _All_   _barriers to his own carnal intrigue now flattened, he could finally acknowledge how curious he was to taste her._

Good _, he rumbled as he pressed his lips into her own._ Very good.

_It didn't take long for her to find her feet and show receptivity to his touch - and how nice she was to touch. Her personality must have been the hardest thing about her, because everything else was unfathomably soft. So much to squeeze and grab, his hands itched to feel her naked flesh._

Let's see what's under that bodysuit, demure little princess.

 _He reached for her zip and she eagerly complied, arching her back, only spurring him further_.

 _When he felt himself suddenly thrown, he was caught entirely off guard. Though frustrated_   _that he'd allowed himself to become so drunk in the moment, Raditz couldn't deny that he wanted more_.  _Rolling his head to the halfling, he attempted to make sense of her abrupt_   _behaviour and watched as she wrestled with herself internally, eyes darting and face panicked until she eventually left altogether._

_That was the first time she'd managed to plant the seed, though he couldn't see it at the time._

_After a few breaths, he sat up and checked his scouter, silently deciding that he may as well get some work done since there was no way he'd be falling asleep any time soon anyway. Begrudgingly getting back to his feet, he walked to the exit._

Wait,  _he hesitated, fingers on the handle._ They'll be able to smell her all over me.  _Without a second thought, he backtracked and headed for the bathroom._

_When he re-entered his suite after an uncharacteristically leisurely shower, she was standing in the doorway, conviction in her eye._

_He almost recoiled at the tender touch when he felt her hand on his chest_.

After _giving her an apparently satisfactory answer about the two others she was found with,_   _he heard his door close and felt those impossibly plump lips crushing against his own._

_Slim arms wrapped around his neck and fire rose within him, bubbling from his core and licking right up to his throat, threatening to come out in one mighty roar._

_He pulled her off the door and hauled her to his mattress, sinking into the sheets while he tore at her skinsuit._

_In an instant, he understood the contrasting paths their respective lives must have taken before the unexpected intersection._ Her body has never seen a second of war,  _he realised, taking in her immaculate image. Her fingers ran over him like silk_   _while his own felt like sandpaper dragging against a delicate satin sheet._

_It pleased him to learn that she was just as fierce inside his bedsheets as she was outside of them. The more he pushed, the harder she pushed back, clawing at corded muscle and digging her fingers into battle-seasoned flesh._

_As he watched her writhing under him, his hand over her throat while she floated down from her own personal nirvana, he couldn't help the satisfied smirk that broke at the sight of her._

Not worth the air they breathe?  _He lowered back down, licking at the salty sweat dripping down her neck._ Fuck you, prince.

* * *

Raditz leaned into his leather seat with a sigh, vaguely following the endless back-and-forth of his opinionated advisors. Lone red cape in a sea of green.

Turles was almost certainly sleeping off last night's hangover while Cinna had been given the morning off. Raditz could only presume Nappa was running late, no doubt chasing after his own brood.

"Our choices are simple," he heard one state sternly. "Sit and wait for an inevitable invasion-"

" _Potential_  invasion," the woman opposite quickly countered. "We can't say for certain whether they're even operating, let alone setting their sights on the Saiyan empire, Cabo."

Fingers steeped on the table in front of him, Raditz gaze floated between the two as he considered their speculations, soon diverting his attention to the entrance when light snuck through. Nappa entered quietly, offering a silent nod to the Kaiser before taking the empty seat to his left.

"Don't be dull, Mari," Cabo scoffed as he rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "Why  _wouldn't_ they seek us out?"

"Perhaps they actually value their lives," Raditz interjected plainly, causing the room to fall silent while a dozen set of black orbs fell on his chair.

"Even so, Kaiser..." Cabo's hoarse voice eventually croaked.

Raditz made a rolling gesture with his forefinger, as though to say,  _Carry on._

"To put it bluntly," Mari regained her stride, casting a tentative glance to the central seat. "We simply do not have the resources to go scouring the galaxy on hearsay alone. It's wasteful beyond comprehension."

"This isn't a treasure hunt, Mari," another spoke up, huskily. "The element of surprise trumps all. It's in our best interest to be ones who act first."

"Easy to say for a bunch of warmongers," she cut back, pressing her palms to the table as she bore her teeth. "But you forget we're trying to fill multiple wells at once. Reallocation of urgent rations from the settlement costs us too. If we stretch things any thinner we're cutting ourselves off at our own legs."

"Would you rather we die literal deaths than figurative ones?" he boomed in return. "Because that's what will happen if we simply allow them to plough through when they turn up unannounced. Can you imagine the carnage if all our military fleets are off-planet when that happens?"

"You raise a fair point, Gour," Raditz' instantly honed in on his father's steady tone. "One that we continue to avoid coming to any worthwhile conclusion on." Bardock looked to the younger Kaiser. "We need all three ships to operate effectively if we are to continue as hired hands, however that leaves us vulnerable to outside attack on Crest. The locally posted guards would be overwhelmed in a heartbeat if they ever found themselves facing a threat of this magnitude."

Raditz could feel himself growing frustrated.

_Seek them first? Could come back empty handed. Deny the village resources, progress stagnates, risk weakening the rest of the population, lose morale, lose cooperation._

_Wait and see? Could back-fire. Risk loss of life, backwards progress, lose morale, lose cooperation._

Then there was the military issue.

_If we head out under-manned, we risk greater injuries and losses. Reputation plummets but the local populous is better protected._

_If we accept contracts with a full force, those who remain on Crest are sitting ducks._

"Kaiser." All eyes were on him once more. "What say you?"

Drowning out the rest, he zeroed in on the only other person present who could possibly understand the gravity of his position. Bardock watched him in turn, a knowing look on his stoic expression.

Raditz recalled the many years serving as his father's second, witnessing Bardock's own strain, struggle and conflict first hand.  _Six years,_ he exhaled, running his lips across his interlocked fingers.  _How did he do this for six years?_

* * *

_His left eye twitched as he sat on the dilapidated couch, forced to watch while his business associate crawled all over her._   _In the corner of his_ other  _eye, he could see Turles' tail beginning to uncurl and flick while fingertips drilled into a scarred bicep. As much as it perturbed him to see someone else pawing at her, Raditz knew he'd be foolish to show his hand._

He's only doing this to fuck with me,  _he reminded himself._

_As his own ire grew, he heard his name escape her lips, and it officially pushed him past his tipping point. "The deal is off," he found himself saying before he even had a chance to rationalise the decision. Heading for the door, he acknowledged that his father would disagree with the action, but the Saiyans would simply need to find themselves another tech supplier. It was time for Serce to meet his maker._

_At least, that's what he'd thought, until he unintentionally plunged his fist right into Bulla's hands. As she attempted to spare the slime a brutal end, three thoughts entered Raditz' mind while he stared into large, pleading eyes._

_One. She was stronger than he expected._

_While he hadn't transformed, he knew most of his own soldiers would not have been able to intercept such a blow without going right through the wall or losing their own life in the process. Bulla had barely even shifted position._

_Two. She was beautiful._

_Without the time to throw on her coy mask, she had inadvertently shown her true face and it was one that knocked the wind right out of him. She was far purer than he'd realised, childlike hurt spreading across her features at his callous actions._

_Three. He had almost killed her._

_A faint pulse beat through her fingers as she gripped his fist, and he recognised how fast her heart must have been beating. A sudden wave of horror washed through him, instantly resenting the thought of the fiery princess' life being snuffed so abruptly, especially by his own hand._

Never again.  _Nausea rose and he quickly squashed it back down._

_While he recovered from his momentary daze, she took the reins - an absolute machine as she tore through the building, acting with the skill and grace of a well-seasoned killer, while knowing precisely how much power to call forth to incapacitate her foes without ending them altogether._

_He marvelled at her expert preemption of the henchmen behind the hallway door._

How could she possibly have known they were there?  _he gaped_. I couldn't even hear them, and none of us had our scouters equipped _. If there was any doubt as to who had trained her before this point, it was absolutely vanquished now. Vegeta was a technical genius in battle, and his talent was seen all through his daughter._

 _And after all that? Of all things, she seethed about Raditz and Turles sitting on their hands while Serce had_ his  _all over her._

You're clearly capable of taking care of yourself,  _Raditz grumbled silently, cheek still burning from her vicious slap_.

 _But when their eyes met, he recognised something behind the fury._ She's disappointed?  _Dark brows drew together in confusion._  Why?

_Raditz mulled over her actions as they headed for their evening's accommodation, watching her back while she walked ahead of him, still sulking quietly._

_Something in the way she'd honed in on Turles' instruction to behave herself gnawed at him, until it hit_ :

She expected us to defend her?  _He stopped walking, causing Bulla and Turles to pause too while they twisted back to look at him._ She thought we'd step in if things went too far.  _He stared at her in disbelief._

" _What?" she scowled. Clearly, all patience for him had dissolved into the seedy cityscape around them._

She trusted me?  _He could barely conceptualise the notion._ And I failed her.

* * *

He lifted his head when he heard footsteps outside the window. He was sitting on the couch opposite his mother when the door floated open, immediately spying a large-eyed Earthling next to his father at the entrance. She stepped in without hesitation, glancing around the inside of the dwelling before bouncing over to Gine.

"Hello!" she greeted enthusiastically, her grin reaching all the way to her glistening brown orbs. "I'm Pan, your great-granddaughter!"

Though he'd intended on observing his mother's reaction to the eager hybrid, Raditz soon caught a signature shade of blue in the corner of his eye and instinctively turned his head to take in the sight of the Saiyan princess while she quietly entered.

Behind her, was her brother, as well as Kakarot's son. Goten slipped past her as all three wandered in, joining his niece in the familial introductions. Gine brought her fingers to her mouth as soon as she saw him, free hand reaching for his cheek. She looked to Bardock with glassy orbs and Raditz instantly felt a faint tug in his chest.

" _So much like Kakarot_ ," she whispered, grazing her thumb over his cheekbone. "I can still picture him so clearly."

Goten offered her a genial smile. "It used to bother me how much I looked like him," he told her. "But now I realise both of us actually resemble Bardock." He looked to the older Saiyan. "And that's not such a bad thing."

Gine transferred her gaze to the remaining visitors. Trunks had both palms resting on his sister's shoulders while he drove her forward. "Trunks Briefs," he greeted with a calm confidence Raditz was beginning to learn was signature of the oldest half-breed. "Though I guess I'm just Trunks out here."

"And I'm Bulla," the young Earthling smiled sweetly, standing before his mother with clasped hands.

"The king's grandchildren," Gine breathed, eyes immediately honing in on the siblings' equally impossibly toned hair. "I could never have imagined in all my days." She looked to Trunks, "Just as Bardock said," and gently tugged at his lavender strands. "His bloodline lives on."

"I wish I could have met him," Trunks replied, piercing blue eyes fixed on the Kaiser's mother. "I've heard so many stories. He sounded like quite the hard-ass."

"Hah," Bardock barked, arms crossed while he observed the introductions. "He couldn't have lost an argument if he tried. Vegeta always needed to be right."

"Definitely runs in the family," Raditz threw in, faint smirk aimed at the aquamarine-haired member of the group, though she didn't react.

Trunks did, however. "I've heard plenty from Nappa by now," he smiled, draping his arm across his sister's shoulder. "But I'm sure you have your own stories of your days working alongside my father."

"He do-" Bulla began speaking but interrupted herself as she shot a cautious look to the remaining male hybrid. "Doesn't really like to talk about it," she finished a bit more quietly.

Over the course of the following hour, the Earthling's proceeded to make themselves comfortable. Trunks and Bardock were speaking easily at the window while Pan and Gine had disappeared into the kitchen. Raditz had just returned from outside after receiving a transmission from Nappa and, from the passageway, observed the two remaining hybrids with rising curiosity.

 _These two have been joined at the hip since he appeared on my ship,_ he silently mulled.

Goten was leaning against the hallway table, arms folded while casting Bulla a discreet glance. The princess herself was looking to a piece of artwork hanging on a nearby wall. When she subtly turned her head, Goten quickly averted his gaze while she proceeded to peek at him out of the corner of her eye.

_And now they won't even look at each other._

Both absently reached for a bowl of nuts on the end table, only to recoil simultaneously and devolve into a series of,

"You go."

"No, you."

"You were first."

"I'm not hungry."

The Kaiser watched the scene with quiet intrigue.

"I'm going to see what your grandmother's up to," Bulla murmured keeping her head down while she marched towards the kitchen. Raditz watched her leave, twisting slightly as she strode past him.

He heard a sigh as Goten dropped down onto the nearest sofa, cheeks puffed out while he leaned his elbows into the tops of his thighs.

Pivoting on his boot, Raditz strolled down the passage. To his surprise, she was standing alone, looking out the window while Gine and the other Earthling puttered around the back garden.

Bulla flinched when he grazed his hand over the small of her back, giving him pause. "I thought your senses were better than that," he commented quietly.

She stepped away, throwing a glance to the doorway. "Yeah, I..." she spoke softly. "Distracted I guess."

"Your friend appears rather taken with my mother," Raditz exhaled through his nose in amusement, watching the quarterling gesticulate wildly as she relayed some mindless tale. He couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Gine sustain a smile for as long as she had today. It hadn't broken since they turned up.

"She's lovely." An absent smile appeared on Bulla's face too, eyes still fixed on the older woman as Gine kneeled to the dirt and pointed at various homegrown vegetables. "So warm. I can completely believe she's the woman behind the Son line." Her expression faltered and she quickly averted her gaze, fumbling while she reached for a glass.

Raditz instinctively shot out a hand as one tipped off the bench top and fell towards the ground, catching it before it shattered on the tile floor.

"Sorry!" she exclaimed, throwing her palms to her mouth.

 _She's like a coiled spring right now,_ he frowned sceptically.  _And she's barely looked my way since she arrived._ While aware, and in entire agreement, of her desire to keep things discreet, she had been acting especially aloof since he'd last seen her. Nagging doubt began to needle through, as it had far too many times for his liking in recent history.

He'd been feeling her out for a while now, subtly attempting to gain some level of insight into the blue-haired half-breed. As was typical with the unashamedly frivolous Earthling, her behaviour was all over the place.

 _Not even a flicker in her eye,_ he quietly filed when he informed her of the ship's gradual approach to base. He told himself it was most-likely due to overwhelm at being reunited with her travel companion, but that didn't stop the resulting clench in his chest at her complete lack of reaction.

 _And yet…_ Thoughts drifted to her jovial smile in his living room the day before. ' _Sweet'_

He grazed his thumb over her cheek, endlessly amazed that such soft skin was even possible.  _There's that faraway look again,_ he noted.  _Any second now, the walls will go up._ "Bulla-" he began.

She jumped, landing on almost the entirely opposite end of the kitchen when her brother appeared at the entrance a few seconds later. "Bulla." Trunks pressed his palm to the wooden archway, gripping the edge. "Bardock's gonna show Goten and I a few things around Crest. Feel like joining us?"

She shook her head. "No thanks."

"You sure?" He looked to her doubtfully. "Sightseeing," he reminded.

"I think I'm going to head back to the house," she told him with a weak smile, clearly wanting to reassure. "Still feeling the effects of the late night, I think." He nodded before giving her a wave and heading back down the passage.

"I can only assume that means Turles' tour was sufficient," Raditz smirked lazily, though she recoiled at his mention of the broody General, much to his surprise.  _What is going on with her?_ he wondered with growing unease when she didn't reply, instead continuing to stare at the floor while she chewed the inside of her lip.

"Can you tell your mom thanks for having us?" Bulla finally spoke as she rubbed her arm. "And it was a pleasure to meet her. I'll come back to say goodbye before we take off."

_Oof._

When she turned to leave, he reached for her hand, lightly pulling back as she looked to the exit, hair hanging in her eyes.

"Meet me later," he requested huskily. "Before the sun sets."

Bulla nodded before walking off without so much as a backwards glance.

* * *

_All he'd wanted was to feel her soft body under his hands._

She must be joking,  _he'd reasoned after hearing her absurd ultimatum._ Some strange Earthling idea of humour _. But she was entirely serious, and that was the real surprise._

How could she be born from my heartless prince?  _he silently stewed while he stared out of his suite window with folded arms. The lights were dimmed - he should have been asleep a long time ago_. He insisted I kill, and she insists that I don't?

_Raditz heard a crash on the other side of the shared wall, followed by another._

Turles,  _he exhaled_.  _The temperamental Saiyan had a habit of leaving a wake whenever they made pitstops, regardless of how brief._ Not my problem. He sees to his own fines.

_Raditz resented feeling so unsettled and it only irked him further knowing that the girl was the source of his agitation._

_With a grumble of defeat, Raditz' boots carried him down the hallway towards her room. He told himself he wasn't giving in - her request was simply easy enough to go along with. Soul would be their only stop until Crest, and they were leaving the next afternoon anyway. The only people he'd need to avoid killing until she left for Advent, was other Saiyans. And that was hardly a tall ask._

Why deny myself a few more weeks of entertainment?  _he rationalised, allowing himself to continue pretending that was all there was to it._

_And it was._

_Until Soul._

* * *

"Raditz." A broad grin greeted him while he stood outside a single story home on the outskirts of the city. "I heard we just missed each other last night at the tavern."

" **The Kaiser!** " A tiny roar sounded from the passageway and soon Raditz felt miniature fists banging against his shins. He bent down in amusement, holding out his open hands.

Limbs shorter than his own forearm extended in series into each palm, beating with vigour only a child could muster.

"Very good, Matto," he praised. "Remember to watch your guard too." Raditz gently tapped at the boy's side with a closed fist. The young Saiyan responded by grabbing the Kaiser's wrist and climbing up his tree trunk of an arm, all the way to his shoulders before draping his legs either side of his head.

"He's grown," Raditz commented once he straightened, holding the boy's foot with one hand and wincing as the eager future-soldier pounded at his head.

"Like a weed," Cinna smiled, upturned eyes pulling high as she fawned at her pride and joy. "Next time we return, I won't even recognise him. Your mother's going to have to show me which one is mine."

"Have you been behaving yourself for Gine?" Raditz directed above him, raising his eyebrows while Matto yanked at his mane as though he were riding a horse into battle. He was too caught up in his own imaginary world to respond.

"Have you seen her since we got back?" Cinna headed for her kitchen, speaking over her shoulder and prompting the taller Saiyan to follow.

"Briefly," he replied, reaching overhead and grabbing the feral tyke by the back of his collar before lowering him to the floor. Raditz pulled out a chair, offering a nod in appreciation when she set a glass of something chilled in front of him.

"Briefly," she scoffed. "Just like your father." She joined him at her quaint table. "You two are all she has left, Kaiser. Have some sympathy for the poor woman."

"She's tougher than she appears," he countered, though he knew Cinna spoke the truth. "I dropped by earlier. Some of the Earthlings wished to meet her."

"They're an interesting bunch, aren't they." She took a drink from her own mug, glancing to him out of the corner of her eye. "Trunks has the tactical smarts of the king without the infuriating personality," she added after a swallow.

"Nappa's certainly smitten," Raditz snorted grazing the tip of his thumb over the building condensation on the side of his glass.

"I don't blame him." Cinna stretched her arms up above her head and arched backwards. "He makes a damn fine Saiyan, though a touch serious sometimes. The little quarterling, however," she added, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Has been a riot. I would add her to one of my squads in a heartbeat."

He raised a curious eyebrow at the comment. "Is that so?" Hearing such high praise from someone he held in rare high-esteem definitely piqued his interest about the dark-haired Earthling. "Bulla claims she's trouble."

Cinna let out a hearty chuckle as she held her drink to her mouth. "The best ones always are, aren't they?" She shoved his shoulder. "Look at your second."

The mention of his other General brought back memories of the morning's scouter transmission. Of all people to doubt, Turles would be the last of them, but he felt an uneasy ache nonetheless.

"So. The princess." She rose from her seat and wandered to the fridge, returning with a jug and placing it on the table after topping up their glasses. "There are plenty of tales, but I want to hear it straight from the man himself. Is she as fierce as they say? The murmurings about her appearance are true at the very least."

A smirk pulled at the end of his mouth while he tapped his finger to the wooden surface. "She's indeed a feisty one."

"Your favourite," she teased, pointy canine showing through. "Tell me about her." Cinna folded her arms and leaned into the table, watching him with undivided attention. "Turles seems to be winning in the polls, but I know you two by now." He glanced up, meeting her gaze. "He's covering up for you again isn't he."

Raditz hesitated. "Ever the infiltrator, Cinna," he finally rumbled.

Matto returned, drumming his palms to his mother's thighs. "I know how you feel about fraternizing with subordinates," Cinna continued, lifting her son up and sitting him in her lap. "So a powerful, unranked Saiyan vixen must have seemed like a gift from the Gods themselves."

 _Not initially_.

"A true equal for our Kaiser," she added.

Raditz said nothing but had to give it to her.  _This is why she's our best operative,_ he silently mused, while Matto tugged at his hand.  _Give her crumbs, and she'll still bring home the whole story._

"It's lonely at the top." The playfulness in her expression began to slip. "You're thinking about it aren't you."

He looked to the boy, currently wide-eyed while he pressed his tiny palm to the centre of the Kaiser's own, mouth agape. "It's crossed my mind," Raditz admitted after a few silent seconds.

"You have doubts," Cinna stated seriously, lips now completely straight. "About what?"

Raditz stayed quiet while he mulled over the question himself.

"How they'll respond to an outsider?" she offered, grabbing Matto by the sides and shifting him up onto the table. "Royal descendant at that."

"That is one concern," Raditz nodded slowly, leaning back into his chair with a faint smile as the boy approached him eagerly, fingers outstretched.

Cinna narrowed her eyes while she continued to stare at the wild-haired Saiyan. "That's not the big one though, is it. What's got you so pensive, Raditz?"

He let out an exhale.

_The girl herself._

"Hmm." She tilted her head. "Having observed the two hybrids aboard my ship for the past while, it seems Earthlings are an emotive people." Raditz looked to her curiously, wondering where this was going. He pushed his seat back, letting the legs drag against the floor as he stood up and hoisted Matto to the ceiling, earning himself a squeal of approval. "Trunks is more reticent, but it seems they remain rather open with their affections."

"Why are you telling me this?" His brows drew together while he held his captive by the ankle, threatening to lower him to the floor head-first while he squirmed in glee. "I'm not interested in the dynamics between the prince's son and Kakarot's granddaughter."

"This isn't about them, Kaiser." A coy smile appeared. "I'm telling you how to speak their language."

* * *

" _Oh!" Bulla exclaimed, eyes growing wide while they curled up at the ends. "This one time, when I was, like, seventeen-"_

_He watched her animated movements while she relayed yet another tale of her inconceivably blissful life on earth, interrupting herself every few seconds when she laughed uncontrollably into her hands._

" _And then my dad punched Goku so hard he went flying into the conservatory-"_

_Her bright orbs were beginning to tear as she clutched her belly and threw her head back to cackle at the ceiling._

" _My mom didn't even bat an eye. She said Goku had always-"_

_Pretty hands flailed as she continued yammering._

_She gave him a shove suddenly, catching him unawares._ " _Are you even listening to me?"  
_

" _I am." Raditz eyed her from his back while she kneeled into the mattress._

" _It doesn't look like it!" she accused, pressing her fingers to her hips._

" _Watching you tell a story is just as entertaining as hearing the story itself," he countered, observing red tint creeping across her cheeks._

 _A playful grin teased at the end of her mouth._ " _What are you trying to say, Raditz?" She poked him in the chest. There was a look of mischief in her eye and one brow raised as she crossed her arms. "You think I'm cute or something?"_

_He let out a sharp, involuntary breath through his nose._

" _Admit it," she beamed, leaning into her fists and crawling towards him on all fours. "You think I'm adorable." Bulla began prodding him all over his abdomen while he started to shimmy in avoidance of her jabbing fingers. "I'm the cutest Saiyan princess you've ever laid eyes on."_

_He let out a grumble but wore a betraying smirk. "We can all thank the Gods there's only one of you," was his answer._

_She stuck out her tongue before hopping off the bed and prancing toward his bathroom._

Only one,  _he mused, watching her through the open door while she danced to some earthly tune in her head._ And somehow-  _The sound of running water hit his ears and he dropped to his feet, following after her._ She fell right into my lap.

* * *

Raditz sat atop the jagged boulder, one knee up while the other hung loosely over the cliff's edge. In the distance, he caught faint movement. Someone was flying his direction from the village centre, though there was no bright aura surrounding them.

 _Must be her. Keeping her energy masked,_ he deduced.

When she landed, she still appeared reserved, though the fact that she'd shown up at all was a positive sign in itself.

"Hey," she greeted breathily, running her fingers through her hair and fanning it out to the ends. "What is this place?"

"We call it Shepherd's Rock," he informed while her head rolled back, taking in the flat, bare mountain-face behind them. "We hold inaugurations here each time a new Kaiser takes the helm."

She looked at him suddenly. "This is where you were sworn in?"

He nodded in response before she stepped forward to take a closer look at three crimson-toned marks high on the stone. "I recognise that symbol!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"So he hasn't entirely forgotten his roots," Raditz smirked, joining her as she continued her inspection with an eagerness he hadn't seen all day. "That." He pointed to the topmost graphic. "Is your family crest, written in your grandfather's blood."

" _Wow,_ " she breathed, lightly tracing her finger over the bold pattern. "These two are different from the King's." She swivelled her head back to him while gesturing to the remaining symbols. "But the same as each other's. You and Bardock?"

He nodded again and she returned to her marvelling.

"Why is this all the way out here?" she questioned absently, now dragging her fingertip over his own pledge. "And not somewhere in the centre of town?"

"Turn around," Raditz responded, prompting her to spin on her boot. A smile tugged at his mouth when he heard a gasp escape her lips. As the sun sank towards the horizon northwest of their location, it cast a blood-red haze on the darkening sky, setting the main city on fire. Miles out of the central settlement were hectares upon hectares of cultivated fields and grazing livestock, and beyond that: lush valley as far as the eye could see. "From here, we acknowledge all that we swear to honour and protect."

He watched while she raked over the sight, a strong wind rolling through, sending her silky locks flying all across her awestruck face. As she stood there, straight-backed and deeply focused, he couldn't deny the innate regality she possessed. Absently, he wondered whether she even knew it herself.

"What are those?" she asked, pointing to a series of towers in the distance.

"Lookouts," he answered, eyes narrowing at the glare. "Each one contains a pair of sentinels who monitor the skies over Crest for any suspicious activity."

"How often do you get suspicious activity?" Bulla turned to face him with a rare childlike curiosity. Again, he was reminded of just how distant their worlds truly were, even outside of physical proximity.

"Infrequently. However-" He wondered if it was even worth mentioning.  _Probably not._

Stepping up to the cliff's edge, Bulla fell silent. The wind was picking up, bringing powerful gusts carrying sorrowful cries every few breaths. While he stood next to her, once more digesting the impossible sight of his own unexpected empire, Raditz turned his head.

 _Tears,_ he noted.  _Again._

Bulla wiped her fingers over her cheeks with a soft sniff. He'd seen her cry more times in the past few days than the entire journey prior and had no idea what to make of it. The only person who ever wept openly around him was his mother, and usually it was out of relief when he showed up on her doorstep unannounced after months off-planet.

"Why did you bring me here?" she eventually asked, voice cracked.

Raditz observed her carefully, full cheeks still flushed as she drew in slow breaths.  _Not now._

"Your brother mentioned sightseeing," he offered. "You won't find a better spot than this."

* * *

_His tail was abruptly yanked as she dashed forward, positively throwing herself at someone he'd never even seen before._

" _It's him," he heard Turles mutter while both Saiyans watched her melt into the newcomer, emotionally unravelled as he'd never seen her before._

" _Who?" Raditz responded, drawing in a breath as he observed foreign hands wandering all across her back. She appeared entirely bewitched by this complete stranger while he buried his face in her neck. Raditz had to suppress a growl when he saw hands cup her cheeks, followed by this nameless fool planting an unashamed kiss right on her face._

" _The other half-breed," Turles answered, voice low. "The one I found her with."_

 _Raditz spotted his father near the duo and reality sank._ Him.

_When Bulla approached the high ranking Saiyans, she was still clutching her fellow Earthling's hand. Her face was a mess - flushed, splotchy, damp. All he could think while he regarded the male halfling was his father's words over the weeks._

_The suspicion was already there, but now all doubt was removed._

Keeps asking about the girl.

He nearly killed Auber today.

Wouldn't cooperate until I told him she was safe.

" _Bardock," Raditz spoke, having had enough of the saccharine reunion. After grabbing his father's attention, the two proceeded down the hallway._

_Bardock followed for a few steps before pausing. "You should meet him," he stated before turning back around. "Goten," he called._

_The trio walked in silence towards his private office. Once each stepped in, Raditz closed the door. "Bardock's already filled me in on the essentials," he stated impassively. "So let's skip the pleasantries."_

_Goten stared back at him before casting a cautious glance to his grandfather. "Uhm. Okay?"_

" _You're a Super Saiyan."_

" _Yeah," Goten shrugged._

" _Skilled fighter, I'm told."_

" _I guess?" The halfling cast another wary look to the eldest member of the room._

" _What about the others. Are they capable of transformation?"_

_Goten hesitated. "Bulla hasn't told you herself?" he asked sceptically. When no one spoke, he added, "Why are you asking me this?" He was beginning to frown. "What does it even matter?"_

_Raditz looked to his father._ He hasn't told him. " _Answer the question," he voiced sternly._

" _... No," Goten eventually replied, eyes on the floor. "Only me."_

 _Raditz nodded._ Perhaps our line is somehow more predisposed to ascension?  _he mulled quietly._ And yet she speaks so highly of the prince's legendary prowess...

" _How urgently do you need to return to Advent once we reach base?" the Kaiser queried while Bardock watched the interaction between the two warriors._

" _It depends on the others, I suppose," Goten responded, rubbing his palm over the back of his neck. "Trunks was kind of the one in charge, so if he says we need to ship out ASAP then that's probably what we'll do." His lips curled upward as he considered his next sentence. "I'm willing to bet Bulla's itching get the first flight back though. She might end up being the one who gets the final say."_

_Raditz stiffened._

" _What is your connection with the prince's descendants?" he found himself asking before he even had a chance to think._

_He'd heard more about Bulla's bizarre life on earth than he'd ever expected to - admittedly, some of it was rather amusing - and yet, despite her talkative nature, she seemed to have little to say about the Earthling he'd just witnessed her bawling her eyes into._

" _Trunks and I grew up together," Goten answered with an easy smile. "We've been friends since I was born."_

" _Son of an elite associating with the son of a low-class warrior?" Raditz questioned, finding the concept entirely unlikely, especially given Vegeta's notorious classism._

" _We didn't really see it that way." The demi-Saiyan shook his head. "I mean, sure, Vegeta occasionally made some jab at my dad along those lines but I'm pretty sure there was no weight to it. He never seemed to have a problem with how much time I spent over at Capsule Corp."_

" _Capsule Corp.?" Raditz repeated, quiet for a few moments while he attempted to remember the significance of the name. "The earth-based technology company owned by Bulla's kin?"_

" _She told you?" Goten raised both eyebrows at the comment. "I mean, it's more than just 'some' technology company, but sure." He leaned into the desk behind him. "Short story is, Vegeta's a dick to my dad but pretty alright with the rest of us. He was kind of a father-figure for me when my own dad wasn't around."_

Vegeta watching over someone else's spawn?  _he processed in disbelief._ Never. Especially if he's a relative of mine.

" _What else has she told you?" Goten looked to the Kaiser doubtfully. "She's pretty private usually."_

_Raditz didn't answer._

" _That was quite the reunion," Bardock finally commented, casting a brief look to his son before returning his gaze to the hybrid. "I don't even greet Raditz' mother that affectionately when I've been away for entire seasons."_

_The demi-Saiyan's cheeks suddenly bloomed pink. "... Uh yeah," he laughed nervously, scratching his scalp. "I guess Bulla and I have become sort of close since we left earth. It's been a strain being away from her all this time." He gradually straightened out of his slouch. "I know Trunks can take care of himself but Bulla…" he hesitated. "She's sort of known for getting herself into messy situations." Raditz' eyes tensed briefly at the curious comment. "I'm glad to see she's okay. Bardock told me she couldn't be in safer hands and I'm starting to see why." Goten paused as he locked eyes with the Kaiser. "There are some powerful people on this boat."_

And how would you rank among us?  _Raditz considered, quietly assessing his nephew._ We'll find out soon enough.

* * *

The obnoxious beeping of his scouter reluctantly dragged him out of restful sleep. Nights were always better planetside. He suspected it was due to breathing non-recycled air for a change, or perhaps absorbing natural UV as opposed to the synthetic alternative that was emitted by the ship's lights.

Or maybe he was simply growing soft.

Pressing the device to his ear, he listened to the frantic transmission of the fourth sentinel post. The message was truncated, but he'd heard enough to catch the urgency of its intention.

Immediately, he tapped his finger to the button at his temple.

"Turles."

He heard his General's voice, throaty and slurred.

"Sober up," Raditz commanded. "There's been another breach."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, we're back in the present though through a different set of eyes. I wonder if he's anything like you imagined him to be? o.o


	24. Just Kids

Hordes of hidden insects hummed as Bulla dragged herself through the door of the Earthlings' temporarily assigned home. The sun was almost completely set, only a lick of orange sneaking through on the horizon. Thankfully, Pan was the sole ki she sensed within.

_I guess the boys are still out with Bardock?_

She couldn't shake the inexplicable weight that her shoulders had been carrying since the day before, only amplified after her excursion with Raditz.

 _Was I reading into that too much?_ Bulla slumped, a heavy ache nagging at the base of her skull as she closed the door behind her.  _Or not enough?_ It was easily one of the most sobering experiences of her short life.

Try as she might to keep it suppressed, guilt was undoubtedly bubbling.

Add to that the afternoon's meeting his mother - so gentle, so sweet. So unlike her eldest son. And yet... Bulla couldn't help but catch the softness with which he gazed at the woman herself.  _He's definitely got more cracks in his armour than I first thought,_ she admitted with a sharp pang.

Pan wandered down the hallway, single eyebrow raised while she crossed her arms at the heiress. "Where have  _you_  been?"

Bulla considered telling a complete lie, but quickly acknowledged that she barely even had the energy to put on a convincing face, let alone muster a believable excuse on the spot. "Out," she exhaled, gliding her fingers through her hair as she strolled towards the kitchen.

"Out where?" Pan persisted, pivoting in position as Bulla passed her, keeping her gaze on the despondent princess while she reached for a chilled drink from the fridge. "And with who?"

Holding the bottle to her lips, Bulla murmured, "Raditz wanted to show me something."

"Was it his dick?"

The heiress immediately choked, cool liquid rushing out through her nostrils and falling onto the tile floor as she threw her palm to her mouth.

Lips curling upward to reveal a cat-like grin, Pan snorted. "I'm not hearing a no."

"We're not-" Bulla began, brows knitting together as she shook her open hand.

"Please," Pan scoffed, stepping over the puddle and grabbing her own drink. "Are you forgetting who your number one lookout girl is? The entire time we were at my great-grandparents' place he barely took his eyes off you."

_Oh._

"Plus, you didn't see the look on his face when you left with my grandpa's lookalike last night," the quarterling added, lifting her nose.

"He saw that?" Bulla's eyes shot open, her entire body seizing. "What did he do?"

Pan shrugged as she wandered back into the living area, "He didn't do anything," and leaned against the spine of the three-seater couch. "But he was definitely giving you two the side-eye."

 _Urgh…_ Bulla threw herself face first into the soft leather sofa, the already building guilt only twisting her stomach further.

"So what's going on here exactly?" She could hear Pan's voice above her, as well as sense the occasional cool droplet on her arm.

" _Stooop_ ," Bulla whined into the back of the couch when she realised what the older girl was scheming. When she reluctantly turned her head to see Pan hovering over her with a dangerously tilted bottle, she yelled, "Hey!"

"He's into you, obviously," Pan stated, gaze loosely downward. "But you went home with our tour guide instead. So what - you trying to make him jealous or something?"

An ungraceful moan sounded from one of the cushions.

"I'm sorry." Pan cupped her ear and rotated her drink even further. "Can you try that again?"

Another illegible grumble.

"I'm only going to ask this once." Pan dropped her bottle to the floor, "Have you, or have you not-" and lifted her leg over the back of the couch. "Been getting your rocks off with -  _of all people_  - my goddamn uncle."

"Ah!" Bulla screamed, jerking onto her back when she felt the older hybrid on top of her, jabbing at her middle and tickling under her arms. "Get off me you whacko."

Pan let out an impish laugh. "Not until you tell me exactly what's been going on since you left earth." She continued her torment through gritted teeth as she relentlessly poked and grabbed.

Bulla swatted at her hands, cackling and crying out for reprieve simultaneously. "You are such a freakin' pain in the ass," she exclaimed, managing to catch a wrist in the process.

While the two girls wrestled, squeals abound, the door floated open with two masculine voices on the other side. Pan and Bulla snapped their heads to the entrance, spotting a blank-faced Trunks clutching the handle.

Waltzing right in, he kept his gaze ahead. "I don't even want to know," he muttered.

Bulla locked eyes with Goten for a fleeting moment before he stepped in too, immediately heading down the passageway.

"How was the sightseeing?" Pan called over her shoulder casually, keeping Bulla's arms pinned to the sofa seats.

While the older girl's attention was divided, Bulla took her chance and abruptly yanked her hands back before bucking Pan onto the floor with a thud and dashing towards their shared room.

"Hey!" the quarterling wailed after her. "We're not finished, missy!"

With her back to their bedroom door, Bulla panted, a manic smile plastered as she continued laughing to herself. The spontaneous tussle got her skin tingling and blood flowing like she hadn't experienced in a while and she suddenly felt like a young girl all over again.

With a long exhale, Bulla closed her eyes, relishing the sensation. It was a welcome lightness amongst the growing turmoil since Goten had appeared on Raditz' ship.

Three handsome faces flashed through her mind's eye, one after the other, accompanied by mental snapshots of rough hands, heavy breaths and hot mouths.

 _Hnng._ Her chest clenched. Bulla slid down until her butt hit the floor, lowering her lids as she pressed the back of her head to the wooden door behind her.

It nudged open suddenly, sending the heiress hurtling forward as Pan forced her way in.

"Think you can get away from me that easily?" the quarterling taunted, though her expression softened when she saw Bulla had lost her spark. "Okay, seriously. What's going on." She slipped in, quietly closing the door behind her and joining Bulla on the ground.

The heiress kept her gaze on the floor for a few quiet seconds before speaking. "I messed up, Pan."

"Messed up how?"

Bulla lifted her head, seeing genuine concern budding onto her dear friend's features. It tugged at her heart, prompting her to throw her arms around the older girl's shoulders as she clawed for reassurance.

"Bulla," Pan voiced softly, rubbing the heiress' back as she hugged her in turn. "You're worrying me. What's so bad that you can't sweet talk your way out of it?" She suddenly grabbed Bulla by both arms, holding her out in front of her. "Oh my God, you're pregnant." Her eyes were bulging, completely fixed.

Bulla immediately let out a choked laugh. "No, Pan. I'm not pregnant," she chuckled. "Well, I don't think I am at least."

"So what's this about? Something to do with my grandpa's brother, I take it." Pan released her grip but kept her attention on the younger hybrid. "What a weird fucking statement," she muttered to herself. "What happened while you were out with him? Did he say something asshole-ish again? I swear to God, Bulla, you have the absolute worst taste in guys."

"Don't remind me," she mumbled, glancing towards the closet.

"I'm not even talking about Reco!" Pan proclaimed. "Though fuck him too. Did anyone tell you he actually came around to our apartment after that story broke?"

Bulla looked up doubtfully. "He did?"

"Man I really wanted to kick his ass." Pan clenched her fist. "But I was still on probation after the whole fiasco with the paparazzi... " A decidedly un-Sonlike scowl took over.

"Did he have anything to say for himself?" Bulla couldn't help but pry. Despite Reco being the furthest thing from her mind in recent weeks, old wounds still stung at the mention of his name and the reminder of what he represented.

"He was his usual dickhead self," Pan grumbled, arms crossing once more. "Tried to brush it off by saying that you were sleeping around too."

" **What?!** " Bulla blurted, slapping her palms to the floor in shock.

"I told him to get out of his own ass." Pan rolled her eyes. "But he insisted he heard it from a reliable source." Bulla looked to her sceptically. "Goten's ex. Remember that walking disaster?"

 _What does Clara have to do with this?_ she frowned.

"Apparently after Goten broke up with her she didn't waste any time getting hold of  _you know who_." The older hybrid scoffed. "He told me he hadn't heard from you after they ended things so was forced to think there was some weight to her warning."

" _Oh my God,"_ Bulla whispered into her hand. "Clara told Reco that Goten and I…?"

Pan stood up, dusting herself off. "Like I said. He's a moron."

"That fucking ass!" Bulla pounded her fist into the hardwood. "He had no  _idea_ what I was going through during all that! I nearly died!"

"What?!" Pan recoiled in horror. "I never heard about this!"

"Yeah..." Bulla grimaced, leaning the heel of her palm to her forehead. "We agreed not to tell the rest of you the whole story. I don't think my mom would have taken it too well. Or my dad."

"Holy shit you guys have had an adventure and a half." Pan sank against the dresser. "Trunks told me what happened with the Saiyans too. How you were just minding on your own business during some big mission and then suddenly: tails."

Bulla shook her head. "Kami, that feels like a lifetime ago," she uttered. "Looking for alien tech and thinking we'd actually be home by Christmas."  _Could we have been more wrong?_

"Oh!" Pan bounced, clapping her hands together. "I almost forgot!" She ran for her bag, scratching through and tossing out the contents haphazardly.

Armed with a single capsule in her closed palm, she hauled the heiress to her feet and dragged her through the door. "Come on."

Begrudgingly, Bulla followed.

When they reached the living area, her nose twitched.  _Whoa, how long has it been since-_

"Ooo, what's Goten cooking?" Pan skipped to the kitchen, unhooking her arm from the heiress' while Bulla headed for the couches.

"This is so good!" she heard Pan's voice from the other room. "Bulla, you have to taste this!"

She couldn't even say she wasn't hungry, because that was almost never true. Life amongst the Saiyans meant she didn't need to hide her voracious appetite for once either, so she was out of practice pretending too.

Diverting course, she feebly wandered towards the rest of the hybrids, soon feeling Trunks arm around her neck as he yanked her aside. "You missed out, sloth," he teased while she proceeded to make mock-choking sounds. "Sleeping the day away instead of joining us around the city."

"Tomorrow," Bulla coughed. "I swear." She glanced to Pan, who was currently stealing bits of food from the stove top while Goten shooed her away. He gave her a warning look, but Pan simply gave him a look back as she took another.

* * *

"This is so cosy." Pan's grin reached her eyes, taking in each of the halfling's faces as they sat spread out in the living room. "Is this what it was like when it was just the three of you in space?"

An involuntary smile forced its way onto Bulla's face at the reminder while she kept her gaze on her plate.

"Pretty much," Trunks answered, cutting into his fried mushroom. "I just realised." He looked across the coffee table at the two Sons before turning to his sister. "This is our first meal together in almost two months."

 _Two months,_ Bulla inhaled, jaw going slack.  _Two months living aboard the Saiyan fleet_.

As she took in the present moment, Goten across from her and Trunks to her right - an evening she could only have dreamed of weeks prior - Bulla couldn't help but compare it with her daily meals with their pure-blooded counterparts. Often she'd end up next to Turles, facing the Kaiser while the two grunted back and forth about mundane military matters. Somewhere along the line she'd invariably end up in an argument with the shorter of the two while Raditz threw in the occasional sarcastic comment. In their own way, she realised equivocally, the three of them had become an unlikely trio in their own right.

"I had no idea you knew how to cook," Pan teased, prodding her uncle in the leg while he dug into his meal on the sofa seat next to her.

"You realise who my mother is, right?" Goten countered, mouth full.

"Touché." Pan glanced to the eldest hybrid, grin growing playful. "Hey Bulla, has Trunks told you what happened when he woke up on Cinna's ship?"

Both younger halflings stopped chewing and looked to him in an instant. "No," they said simultaneously.

Trunks let out a groan. "It's not even worth mentioning," he mumbled on an exhale. "Forget about it."

"That's not what  _I_ heard," Pan gibed, straightening her spine as she licked her knife.

Bulla was now too curious to let it go. "What did you hear?"

Pan started to snigger. "He thought he was dead, and wound up in otherworld."

"Shut up," Trunks gnarled.

"Why would he think this, you may be wondering?" Pan persisted, not letting the disdain on his face dissuade her in the slightest. "Because when he opened his eyes for the first time-"

" _Pan."_ There was clear warning in his tone.

"He was in the dormitories, surrounded by women," the quarterling laughed, dodging his fork when he chucked it right at her face. "Six of them hovering over him, caressing his face." She dragged her palm over her own cheek, "Stroking his hair," and pinched her thick dark strands.

"No way!" Bulla looked to her brother, wide-eyed. "That's so gross. I couldn't believe how touchy they were when I first met them," she added with an exaggerated sneer.

"There are worse ways to be woken up." Trunks gave Pan a death glare before looking to her uncle. "What about you guys?"

"I woke up in the infirmary, covered in bandages," Goten shrugged, cheeks bulging as he ladled in more greens. "They got me pretty good. I wasn't able to leave for almost a week."

Bulla silently gasped as she watched him continue his meal.  _He didn't tell me that,_ she frowned _. How much did they hurt him?_

"Yikes." Food sloshed around Pan's mouth as she eyed her uncle. "Rough start. Look at you now though," she added, with a jovial smile. "Bardock and Gine are pretty much ready to adopt you as their replacement son."

"I dunno about that…" Goten snorted, readjusting in his seat.

"Bulla?"

"Huh?" The heiress turned her head to see her brother's piercing blue orbs gazing back at her.

"What's your story?"

"Oh, I-" she faltered, attention falling to her plate. "I woke up in one of the private suites..." The less detail the better. The last thing she needed was to spotlight the apparent special treatment she'd enjoyed from day one.

"Really?" Trunks wasn't making this any easier, however. "Whose room?"

After a few seconds, she mumbled, "... Turles."

A ring hit the heiress' ears when Goten's knife slipped out of his hand and smacked the end of his porcelain bowl, prompting all three to look to the dark-haired demi-Saiyan at the unexpected clamour.

"The guy you left with last night?" Pan directed at the younger girl, narrowing her eyes.

 _Oh my God, Pan._ Bulla could have died on the spot when she felt three sets of hybrid orbs turn to her instead.

"I-" she attempted before getting cut off.

"Don't wanna hear it," Trunks interrupted, showing his palm and shaking his head. "Seriously. Keep that shit between you and Pan."

 _Fine by me._ Bulla placed the last forkful in her mouth, watching Goten out of the corner of her eye as he rose from his seat and started collecting their empty dishes.

"Done?"

She lifted her gaze, spying outstretched fingers. "Thanks," Bulla nodded.

"Wanna give me a hand?" he asked while both demi-Saiyans gripped opposite ends of her plate.

"Sure." She stood up too, following him into the kitchen. "That was really yum-"

"About yesterday," he exhaled, dumping the dishes in the sink.

Bulla froze.  _Oh, wow. We're going straight there._

Trunks waltzed in that very moment and she heard an audible groan from the man next to her. "Look at you," her brother chuckled at her. "You're white as a sheet."

Pan ducked in too, clutching the door frame with an eager smile, "You guys ready for my surprise?" and skipped in, grabbing both halflings' wrists before dragging them back towards the living room. "Come on. We can be responsible adults later."

"What's all this about?" Trunks asked with folded arms as he stood behind Bulla's couch of choice. Goten sat on the adjacent sofa while all three demi-Saiyans watched a bubbling Son Pan command their attention near the fireplace. Music could even be heard from her portable speaker.

_Are those… carols?_

"So while the three of you were out having the time of your lives." Pan gave Bulla a cutting look. "I was back home, moping and alone after shit fell apart  _yet again_." Cue a dramatic Pan pout. "After Bulma agreed to let me take the Hummingbird to find you guys, Marron came over to help me pack."

"Oh." Goten perked up at hearing his old friend's name. "How is she?"

"She's fine. Anyway." Pan held a capsule up between her thumb and forefinger. "We had an idea." She popped the button and tossed the cap to the floor. Once the smoke cleared, Bulla heard Trunks' chuckle first.

"Let's bring Christmas to  _you!_ "

Before them were bundles of wrapped boxes, pretty bows atop each one. In addition, Bulla spied bright, glossy crackers, silly hats and sweet treats galore. "Pan," she spoke slowly. "Seriously?"

"What do you mean 'seriously'?" the quarterling pressed her fists to her waist, a disturbingly Chi-Chi-esque look on her face. Dropping down to her haunches, Pan began scratching through the pile, pulling out a fuzzy crown with plastic gems encrusted throughout. "This is Trunks' hat for obvious reasons."

He took it from her and sheepishly plopped it on his head, earning himself a giggle from his sister.

"That's Goten's!" Bulla declared, getting in the spirit as she pointed to a multicoloured jester's hat with golden bells at the end of the each of its floppy tails. Her cheeks flushed when she realised how overly enthusiastic she was being, though he went along with it, to her surprise. Once Goten put it on, it jingled merrily as he tilted his head side-to-side, warm Son smile growing on his face.

"Here's yours." Pan passed Bulla a glittery purple witch's hat, long pointy cone extending from its base. "This one's definitely mine," the quarterling concluded, plonking a soft green and yellow Viking helmet on her own head and kicking the rest aside. "Now that we've got that sorted." Pan clasped her fingers together. "Let's make a mess." She bent down and grabbed a Christmas cracker off the floor, passing the other end to Trunks.

With a loud pop, a plastic toy bird fell out of the middle, along with a folded piece of paper. Pan dashed for it before it floated to the floor, eyes running over the text before throwing it over her shoulder with a scoff. "Urgh. Who wrote that, King Kai? Next!"

She then passed one to Bulla, who gave a tentative look to the man opposite her. He offered a nod as he reached out his hand. Wincing while they pulled their cracker apart, Bulla couldn't help the girlish squeak when it burst.

Goten caught something small and black in his palm, soon bringing a cartoonishly large moustache to his top lip as he smiled at the heiress. "Who am I?"

After a stifled snort, Bulla erupted into emphatic laughter, unable to squash down the steady rise in her mood as the evening wore on.

He began laughing heartily too, and for a moment, Bulla's conscience allowed her to pretend they were back on earth: Four Saiyan hybrids partaking in an entirely unSaiyan holiday while everything else fell to the wayside.

* * *

" _Where do you think they are?_ " Bulla whispered, water pistol to her chest as she conspired with her teammate. The lights were off and they were both huddled behind the sofa while they held their breath, entirely on edge.

" _Shh."_  Pan twisted her head slightly. " _I think I hear something._ "

" **Got 'em!** "

Both girls shrieked as they bolted for the front door, jets of water shooting past their heads. Pan turned in her sprint, returning fire while Bulla raced through to make her way around the back of the house.

She heard an 'oof' as she crashed right into a hard torso, sending both halflings tumbling to the dirt. Bulla quickly scrambled to her feet, feeling fingers wrapping around her wrist. Bringing her pistol right to Goten's face, Bulla pulled the trigger, hearing warbled sputters as he lost his grip. Cackling like the witch she was tonight, she tore away, soon reuniting with a puffed Pan.

"Hey look." Bulla glanced down the dirt road, voice hushed. The older of the two signalled a timeout to her uncle as Bulla silently watched Nappa stroll towards them. He was distracted while he chatted with a young toddler sitting on his shoulder, a fierce looking woman on his left with an eyepatch over her right eye and an unsightly burn scar all down her right arm. In front of her, she steered the same young cadet they'd met the day before - the boy who claimed to be the General's son.

"Don't." Bulla put out her arm when Pan began walking forward. "We should leave them alone."

" _He's got a daughter_ ," Pan whispered, positively enthralled as she stared at the burly Saiyan while he continued rumbling at the little bundle.

It was the first time Bulla had really seen him since Soul. Well, that wasn't entirely true - she'd seen his back at the tavern the previous night, but she wasn't really in the right frame of mind to be paying him any heed. She couldn't help but swell a little when she realised how pleased she was to see him again.

He seemed to sense their gazes eventually, as Nappa soon turned his head to stare back at them. Bulla offered a soft smile and short wave, catching the attention of his son. The boy pointed to the two Earthlings excitedly, causing his mother to glance over too.

She muttered something to Nappa while he kept his eyes on the girls, though nodded in response to whatever she'd said.

The boy escaped his mother's loose grip and ran towards the hybrids. "I saw you two yesterday!" he announced with assuredness only a Saiyan could show at such an age. "You visited the school with General Turles."

"We did," Pan grinned, pressing her palms to the top of her thighs as she bent at the knees. "You out for an evening stroll with your parents, little guy?"

"I'm not little," he scowled, brows knitting together. "I'm the tallest in my year."

"Sorry," Pan chuckled, lifting her gaze to the approaching adults. "You're right. Your dad is one of the tallest people I've ever met, I bet you will be too." She patted his head. "Do you maybe want to introduce us to your mom?"

"Princess," Nappa greeted coolly once he reached them.

"Hey big guy," Bulla beamed, despite herself. She had to restrain the urge to hug him, mostly for his sake. "Long time no see."

He looked gingerly between the hybrids as Pan straightened. "What trouble are you two getting up to?"

"Nothing!" Both quickly asserted, innocent doe looks on each of their faces while they dropped their pistols behind them.

"I'm Pan!" the quarterling added, flashing a genial grin to his presumed spouse before directing her hands to her fellow Earthling. "And this is Bulla."

"Hi!" the heiress greeted amiably.

"Which one is the Kaiser's kin?" the mysterious woman responded, looking to the towering Saiyan next to her. "And which is King Vegeta's?"

"Granddaughter of Kakarot." Nappa gestured to the older hybrid. "Granddaughter of King Vegeta." He shifted his hands to Bulla.

Pan cleared her throat, giving the General a pointed look. "Are you going to introduce us, Nappa?"

"Aster," the lady Saiyan spoke frankly, expression entirely deadpan.

"I'm Peri!" the little soldier interjected, still watching the Earthlings with unbreaking fixation.

"Delighted to meet you both." Bulla tried her best to appear courteous. She couldn't help but gather that Nappa's wife was even less tolerant of bullshit than he was. Lowering to her haunches, she asked his son, "Is that your sister?" The heiress looked to the chubby toddler, wide black eyes staring back at her as though entranced. "What's her name?"

As if on cue, the tot began to squirm on her father's shoulder, tiny hands reaching out and clenching the air. Nappa lowered her to the ground and she immediately toppled onto her palms before hobbling back upright and taking shaky steps towards the hybrids.

Pan and Bulla instantly dropped to the ground, cooing and fawning as she attempted to make her way forward without falling over again

"You trust them?" Bulla heard Aster utter.

"They're harmless," Nappa rasped, crossing his meaty arms as he observed the high-pitched interaction.

"Oh my God, I want one," Pan proclaimed, picking the little dumpling up off the dirt and holding her in her arms while Bulla continued to fuss over her impossibly adorable face.

"I know, right?" Bulla breathed, aquamarine orbs sparkling as she watched miniatures sausage fingers grasp at Pan's shoulder-length locks. "I wonder if we can adopt one and raise it together back on earth. Another Saiyan for our little clan."

"Boy or girl?" Pan childishly stuck out her tongue, causing her new friend to squeal.

"Definitely a girl." The heiress melted when a small pink tongue slipped out of the toddler's own mouth, an uncoordinated attempt at mimicking. "We have boys coming out of our ears down there."

"What would we name her?" Pan looked Bulla in question before both turned their heads, hearing the approach of heavy footsteps.

"I think that's enough," Nappa grumbled, hoisting his toddler out of Pan's grip and returning her to his shoulder, where she proceeded to slap her soft palms to his shiny head in jubilation. "Before you two get carried away."

"Can we have your next baby?" Pan blurted, earning herself a swat from the heiress.

"Pan!" Bulla snorted, cringing at the perplexed expression on Aster's face. "Don't be weird."

"What!" the quarterling argued, extending her arms in exaggeration. "They make gorgeous kids. There's no guarantee either one of us could make something that cute if we ever get knocked up."

"We're leaving now," Nappa stated matter-of-factly as he corralled his brood. Aster was still eyeing the two sceptically as she pulled her son along and Bulla was almost certain she heard the term 'head injury' leave her lips.

Spinning on their boots and retrieving their toy guns, the Earthlings headed back for the house.

On entering, both kept their hands raised in forfeit until they tossed their pistols to the floor to join the rest of Pan's silly gifts once they realised that Trunks was already lounging across one of the sofas.

"Scoot over," Bulla requested, standing before him. "Thanks," she exhaled when he tucked his legs in, allowing her her own space to colonise. Setting a cushion up against his folded thigh, Bulla sank down with him, lowering her lids.

"Go awaaay," Bulla moaned when Pan threw herself over the pair, smothering the heiress with her baggy cotton t-shirt.

"Rude," Pan scolded with a snigger, rolling over the spine and dropping back to her feet. "Why am I not allowed to hang out with you guys on the cuddle couch?"

"Go find your own brother to annoy," the heiress giggled, hooking her arm around Trunks' leg and giving it a squeeze. She opened a single eye, watching as Pan quietly began collecting some strewn pieces of ribbon and wrapping paper. "Hey Pan," she called.

"Yeah?" the quarterling answered, staying on task.

"Thank you," she uttered, causing the older girl to pause.

Pan twisted around, broad smile present, "Anytime, B," and dumped the crumpled paper all over the heiress, as well as her brother in the process. "But  _tomorrow."_ She gave her a stern look.

"I'll tell you everything," Bulla yawned. "I promise."

* * *

Bulla stirred, disoriented for a moment before establishing that she was still in the living room.

Pushing into her hand, she glanced around and rubbed her eye. The lights were off but moonlight was pouring in through the generous window to her left and she discovered someone had taken the time to cover her in a soft throw while she'd napped.  _Aw, Trunks_. Down the hallway, she could sense Pan and Goten, stationary. Probably asleep.

Bulla snapped her head when she felt a distinctive ki approaching the house.  _Oh God._

Pulling on her boots, she raced for the door, almost crashing right into it before flinging it open and greeting her guest with wide, flustered eyes and fresh bed head.

Turles reared when he saw her. "Going somewhere?"

"No, I-" She cut herself off and patted her hair down self-consciously. "Do you ever sleep?" she muttered sheepishly, stepping outside and closing the door behind her. "What are you doing here?"

He poked his head to the window. "Looking for your brother."

Bulla glanced up at him doubtfully, "He's not here," and folded her arms as a chilly breeze skated through. Without the chest armour, there wasn't much between her and the evening elements. "Couldn't you sense-"

He gave her a look.

"Nevermind," she snorted, hopping on the spot to warm up. "What do you want Trunks for? Have you two even spoken before?"

"Fine," he sighed, casting a scrutinizing gaze to the sky. "The other one then."

"The other what?" Bulla replied, dubious. "You mean Goten?"

"Yeah, him."

"He's inside." She instinctively blocked his entry when he reached for the door handle. "Why?" Bulla narrowed her eyes at the moody Saiyan. "What do you need to tell them that you can't tell me?"

"I don't have time to mess around," he warned, admittedly appearing more serious than she'd seen him in recent weeks. She didn't give in though, simply pressing her back further into the entrance as he stepped closer.

"Bulla," he growled, edging nearer. "Not now."

The door opened suddenly, sending her tumbling backwards before Turles grabbed her wrist and saved her an ungraceful landing. As she pulled herself up, Bulla rested her hand on his shoulder, lazily regaining her balance while he absently brought broad fingers to her side. When she gazed up at him, Bulla noted Turles' attention was behind her and she frantically spun around.

"Goten!" she blurted when she realised whose energy she was sensing. "What are you doing up?"

"I heard voices," he answered, looking between the two coolly. His eyes fell to Turles' hand, still gripping the heiress' waist, and she quickly yanked herself free.

Turning to leave, Goten began closing the door.

"Wait," Bulla called out, pressing her palm to the wooden slats and interrupting his exit. "He says he needs to tell you something." She looked to the General who had his gaze on something in the distance once again.

"Not interested," Goten mumbled, waltzing off into the dark passage.

"Come back here, you fuck," Turles barked into the house, causing Bulla to recoil.

"Chill out, man," she scolded, keeping her voice low. "It's late, remember?" When she turned her head to eye him more carefully, Bulla caught the tension in his jaw and the tightness of his lips.

"Turles," she spoke with building unease, feeling a jolt when he finally met her gaze with a harsh glare.  _Where's the guy from last night?_  she shivered _._  "What's going on?"

That's when she registered Raditz' energy signature and slowly rolled her head his direction. From what she could tell, he wasn't anywhere near his place.

White light enveloped the heiress as she powered up and readied herself for launch, though twisted with a scowl when she felt rough fingers wrapping around her forearm.

"What do you think you're doing?" Turles chided.

"What are  _you_ doing?" she bit back.

"Don't involve yourself in this," he warned. Or was it a plead?

_In what?_

That set her fine hairs bristling. "Like hell I won't!" And with that she shot off, tearing through the night sky while she honed in on Raditz' unintentional beacon.

It didn't take long to sense Turles behind her, soon catching up and glowering her direction while she kept her focus ahead.

"What's he doing out there so late?" Bulla shouted into the wind. "Something's happened." It came out like a statement, but she was more than a little unsure of what to make of it all. Turles showing up in the middle of the night was certainly unexpected, though she was ready to write it off without much question on its own.

"If you're going to be stubborn about this." He was still staring at her. "At least listen to my instructions and follow my lead."

"Because we all know how well that went the last time!" Bulla spat bitterly, ears growing hot.

"I'm not kidding around, Bulla." His tone was indeed humourless. "You shouldn't even be out here."

Bulla drew to a sudden halt, eyes darting over the forest below, causing Turles to pause too while he watched her in suspicion. "Should there be anyone  _else_  out here right now?" she asked warily, tingles dotting up her spine. "Like scouts or something?"

"No, wh-"

Immediately, Bulla grabbed him by the vambrace and sank to the ground like an anchor, instinctively dropping her ki in the process.

Guarding her face against the torrent of branches that stabbed at her on her way down, she perched herself on an especially sturdy limb, keen blue orbs carefully tracing over the mulch-covered dirt below. " _There's someone down there,"_ she informed before he could protest her erratic behaviour.

"My scouter's not picking anything up," he countered. The fact that he was keeping his voice low told her he trusted her senses at least  _a little_. Bulla made to move from her spot when he suddenly stretched his arm out in front of her and brought a single finger to his lips.

Before she knew it, a beam of light erupted from his open hand, scorching a cluster of trees.

"What was that for!" Bulla scolded, staring at him in shock. He didn't pay her any heed, however - his eyes were trained on something below.

Bulla followed when he hopped down, faltering when she noticed something flickering in and out of sight on the ground some metres ahead. She let out an audible gasp when she registered that the strange object was wearing uniform.

 _Oh my God._ Her heart sank.

Turles got down on his haunches to inspect the downed creature, the smell of searing flesh abruptly hitting the heiress' nostrils when he rolled it over.

She brought her hand to her mouth, wincing as nausea crept.

"Who is he?" Bulla croaked, keeping her gaze averted while Turles pried his chest plate, exposing yet more charred skin.

The General then picked up the rifle that had skidded a few feet away, eyeing it carefully while he rotated it in his hands. "There aren't any telling markings," he murmured, "I don't recognise the armour," and looked back at the corpse dispassionately. "Or the tech."

Bulla kept her distance. She couldn't recall ever having been this close to a freshly dead body before and her skin was positively crawling. "Did you have to-"

"Yes," he cut her off, rising to his full height, brusque like she hadn't seen him in a long while. Gun in hand, he walked towards her. "If you're already reeling, leave. I warned you not to come out here."

"We still need to find Raditz," she contended, thumb and index finger pinching her nostrils while her legs wobbled.

"Raditz is more than capable of looking out for himself." Turles floated towards the treetops, prompting Bulla to do the same. "Neither of us need you getting in the way."

" _Getting in the way,_ " she baulked. "Are you  _kidding_  me?" Her teeth ground together at the unexpected dismissal. "You know I can fight, Turles."

He turned suddenly, bringing his face to hers and boring down. "You can  _play fight,_ " he snarled, causing her cheeks to burn once more - a combination of embarrassment at how easily he read her disturbance and bashfulness at the intensity behind his glare.

"How did you know that guy was there?" Bulla called out when he turned away, tailing him as he flew ahead. "Did you sense him?"

"I heard him," Turles answered gruffly. "The crunch of the leaves under his boot."

"I think he had some sort of scatter tech built into his armour." The heiress was forced to yell over the wind once again. "That's why we couldn't see him." Turles twisted his head to look at her, sceptical. "It could be why your scouter didn't pick him up either."

"Scatter suits?" he muttered to himself.

"Yeah," Bulla continued, hair flying wildly across her face. "The way his armour reflected when he flashed invisible reminded me of the cloaking stuff Capsule Corp. was looking into a while ago. We even had it on the ship we were travelling on."

Turles continued flying, though watched her curiously. "Tell me about this cloaking."

"Trunks would probably be able to explain the details better than I could," she admitted, still trying to force images of the burnt cadaver out of her head. "I only saw a few prototypes back when they were still developing the technology."

"But what you're saying is that this process would allow the wearer to appear concealed to the naked eye?" he clarified, watching her closely.

"In theory, I guess?" she responded, chewing the inside of her lip as she dug for anything else that could be of use. "You'd notice a sort of shimmer, maybe. Like vapour in the air on a hot day." He nodded, apparently understanding the analogy. "But I get the impression the suit scatters their energy output too." Bulla narrowed her eyes and dropped her gaze to the planet's surface in thought. "I could tell someone was nearby but I couldn't pinpoint his exact location."

"Turles," Bulla spoke when he drifted off yet again, seemingly digesting her explanation. "Please tell me what's going on."

His attention was on one of the towers in the distance, the very same she was currently picking up Raditz' energy signature. "Go home," was all he said, voice gravelly and stern.

"I'm not going anywhere." Her temper was rising rapidly. "Stop treating me like a child. It's insulting."

"What do you value more?" he responded bluntly, coming to an abrupt stop and causing her to crash into his chest plate with a yelp. "Your feelings? Or your life?"

Bulla frowned as she rubbed her nose. "Why are you being such a  _ **jerk**_ right now?" She gave him a shove, genuine hurt building despite herself.

Without warning, a laser beam came screaming towards them from the treeline, narrowly missing Turles' scouter as it slipped between their bodies and sailed into the night sky.

Bulla shrieked in surprise before gripping Turles' arm and digging her fingers into nylon when she picked up foreign energies. " _They're here,_ " she quickly informed. " _With us."_

He glanced around warily, eyes tensing. "I don't-"

"Looks like luck is on our side tonight," an unfamiliar voice hissed. "We've already found one of the targets."

Bulla stiffened. She couldn't tell how many there were - more than one at the very least. Without her senses to rely on, she was growing increasingly jittery.

" _Get behind me,_ " she heard Turles rumble as his dark orbs floated right to left.

"Who's the other one?" another spoke. His voice was much deeper, slower too. "She doesn't fit the standard profile."

"Probably some lesser slave species." Bulla spun around when a third voice came from her rear. "Regardless, she's of no consequence."

" _Excuse me!_ " she scoffed. For a split second, she felt a flash of energy and quickly yanked Turles aside, hearing a vague scrape against his armour as she spared him a sneaky blow.

He tore out of her grasp, bringing his hands up defensively before throwing a heavy punch into, what appeared to be, thin air.

After a few breaths, something blinked around his still outstretched arm. The limp form of a fully uniformed soldier slumped over his fist.

"Oh sh-" The sentence was cut short when a bright ki ball barrelled out of Turles' free hand, colliding with another invisible barrier. Bulla could only watch in horror when a glossy, armoured corpse sank heavily to the ground.

Her breaths grew hurried.

"Your tricks won't work," Turles bellowed into the night. "If you thought invisibility was enough to gain the upper hand, you've severely underestimated the abilities of a Saiyan."

No one responded.

_Was that all of them?_

"Surrender now," he continued, glancing around cautiously. "And I'll reward you with a swift death."

Bulla glared at him in disbelief.  _Is that supposed to be convincing?_

 _There!_ Someone silently blipped to her right, still hidden but fleetingly signalling his presence, and she hastily shot out her own ball of energy.  _Dammit!_ she cursed when it had no effect.  _Too soft._

" _Commit to the fight,"_  Turles uttered over his shoulder. " _Or don't fight at all._   _Now's not the time for half-measures._ "

" _I know,_ " she whispered back. " _Sorry._ "

Bulla gasped when she felt something cold and stiff digging into her neck. Lowering her lids, she took a slow breath.  _Three. Two. One._

Ki burst forth from the heiress, blasting out all directions and sending her would-be assailant flying. He let out a restrained grunt and Turles quickly pivoted, firing a solid stream of energy.

 _Jesus, that's four already,_ she shuddered, watching the soldier waver back into sight as the beam gradually seared his uniform.  _Ugh._ Bulla turned away, clutching her nose.  _That stench._

Amongst the commotion, she felt someone flee and made a second attempt at doing her part, holding out an open palm and unleashing her own ki stream in his direction.  _Got him,_ she exhaled when it met resistance.

Resolve weakened when she heard a warbled cry, immediately dropping the intensity of her attack while she drifted closer. "Show yourself!" Bulla demanded, putting on her most authoritative tone. "Or you'll fry like your friends."

"Stop messing around and finish him!" Turles ordered from her left, sending a cascade of shivers down her spine. For the first time since meeting the General, she was beginning to understand his role as more than just an impressive title with a pretty cape.

 _I can't._ Her face scrunched.

"Wait!" Bulla called when Turles began advancing on her captive. She had to act quickly if she wanted to prevent a body count of five before the new day had even started. "We don't know who these people are," she put forward. "And they haven't done anything wrong except turn up unannounced."

"Don't be foolish," he muttered, continuing forward. "Why do you  _think_  they're here?"

"We could get answers out of him," she added hastily.

Turles hesitated, much to her relief.

"Get some answers then." He glanced back at her, gripping the now visible soldier by the neck with one hand and binding his arms with the other as Bulla's beam dissipated.

While Turles had him restrained against his chest plate, Bulla faced the lone assailant. "Who are you guys?" she asked quietly. "And what are you doing here?"

She was met with silence and an expressionless full-face helmet.

"If you don't answer me." She took a breath and lifted her gaze to the General. He was watching her closely in turn. "He'll kill you."

"He'll kill me anyway," the outsider finally responded.

"No, he won't," Bulla asserted. "If you tell us exactly what brought you here, and  _why_ , he'll let you go."

"I certainly will not," the older Saiyan argued, staying firm when his captive attempted to wrestle himself free.

Bulla threw Turles a stern glare. "Yes you will," she insisted, widening her eyes in warning. "It's called bargaining."

"Saiyans don't bargain," he countered, returning her warning look. "We set the parameters and they are free to take it or leave it. I always recommend the first option if they're a fan of breathing."

Bulla threw her head back in exasperation. "Listen, mister," she directed at the foreign soldier. "Just tell me what's going on and I promise I'll do my best to keep this rabid beast from going Cujo on you."

He continued to remain tight-lipped.

"What are you doing?" Turles chastised when she started patting her hand all over the opaque visor.

"Trying to open this thing," she mumbled, gripping both sides with her fingertips while she sought anything resembling a button. "I want to see his face."

A smirk appeared on the surly General's face - the first one of the evening. "Does he get a kiss goodnight? What a generous send-off."

Bulla glanced up at him, unimpressed, before a smirk teased at her own mouth. "Jealous?"

Turles snorted, amusement only growing as his obsidian orbs began to dance. The fact that he was lowering his guard enough to tease her eased some of her own rising worry. She faltered, however, when the helmet between her hands slid open to reveal the face of its wearer.

Inside, was a relatively young alien - surely no older than herself - with boyish features, pale green skin, clear, striking eyes and fiery resolve etched into his expression. Bulla couldn't help but gasp as she took him in.  _He's just a kid._

Seeing her surprise, Turles spun the boy around, his own eyes expanding before plunging his fist through the lustrous armour.

" _ **No**_ **!** " Bulla screeched, stomach twisting as blood sputtered out of the boy's mouth and onto Turles' chest piece. "You monster!" She pounded at him with closed fists as he tossed the squeaking body to the trees and blasted it into nothingness, aquamarine orbs beginning to fill. "He wasn't a threat! You could have spared him!"

He grabbed her wrists, expression back to blank.

"Don't touch me!" she screamed, trying and failing to pull herself out of his grip. "Don't you dare touch me ever again." His brows furrowed for a fleeting second as his lips parted. "Oh my God, I can't believe-" She had to suppress the bile that was currently threatening to come out of her. "This is so sick."

"Calm down!" he commanded as she continued to spiral.

" _He was only a boy."_ Tears threatened to run down either side of her face. "He could have helped us."

"He never would have helped us," Turles told her dispassionately, tightening his grip as she continued to yank.

"How can you know that?" she demanded, meeting his infuriatingly impassive expression. "You didn't even give him a chance."

"Would  _you_ aid those who purged your home planet before your very eyes?" he roared back, finally reciprocating some of her fire as she continued to sob before him.

"You recognised him?" she sniffed, taking a slow breath to reel back some of her composure.

"Of course not." Turles dropped her hands, "But I know his kind," though still watched her cautiously.

She held her sleeve to her face. "I've had enough of this," she murmured, eyes still stinging. "I can't watch you kill these people one after the other. They haven't done anything wrong."

"Go then," he responded coolly. "And tell the rest of the half-breeds to stay out of it while you're at it. We don't need your feeble-hearts interfering while we deal with whatever's going on here."

The two exchanged incensed stares, neither budging an inch.  _What the hell was I thinking?_ she berated herself.  _Thinking these psychopaths could ever learn compassion._

 _I'm just as bad as they are for even associating with them._  Fresh hot tears brewed while she swallowed thickly.  _ **Sleeping**_ _with them!_

Bulla turned away, ready to wash her hands of the entire experience and just take a pod straight back home. To hell with this whole mission - she'd been through enough and wanted nothing more than to crawl under her plush blankets, safe and warm. Perhaps after washing her mouth out with bleach.

She stopped in her tracks, however, when she noticed someone ahead. He appeared different from others they'd encountered so far - for one she could actually see him.

He was white from head to toe with delicate features across the board - pointy nose, spindly fingers, slim neck. And no helmet, brandishing eyes the colour of ice.

He wore an inviting smile, and it raised her hackles something fierce.

"Who are you?" she uttered apprehensively, though he didn't appear threatening, and she wasn't picking up anything significant in his power level.

"My." His voice was smooth as liquid honey. "It seems there's yet more to learn about you apes." There was a touch of bitterness in the comment that didn't quite match his angelic appearance. "Are you Saiyan, sweetheart?" He tilted his head while he eyed her curiously. "I didn't realise there were such exquisite variations to be discovered. Come here, let me take a closer look at you."

Bulla's insides flipped and all muscles simultaneously tensed when she felt a vague ache in her core, followed by a faint involuntarily pull towards the voice.

Turles came up behind her, armour pressing to her back. Despite herself, this newcomer already had her completely on edge, and she was only too happy to feel Turles' presence, even if she  _had_  been seething at his existence just moments earlier.

"Turles." The creep's smile grew even broader, arms spreading as though to greet him with a familial embrace. "My lovely Turles. Look at you - you haven't aged a day."

She felt the General's fingers discreetly dotting over her side before snaking across her stomach and clamping down. All she could register was his rising tension and it did nothing but amplify her own.

" _If there was ever a time for you to listen to me,"_ he breathed, warm air skating over her ear. " _It would be now."_

With a gulp, the heiress subtly turned her head and gave a light nod.

Before her next heartbeat, Bulla was completely engulfed by explosive heat as Turles ascended and launched the both Saiyans in the opposite direction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, remember me :') Apologies for the delay, I do aim for faster updates as a rule. Unfortunately, life happens sometimes. As always, thank you for your interest and engagement thus far, sincerely. I can't imagine I would've have bothered bringing this story to page if it wasn't for your support x


	25. Tender Heart

"Who is that guy?" Bulla shouted into the wind, hair splaying passed her face as she stared out behind them in panic.

She couldn't fathom the dread that was currently rising through her. All blood had drained from her face and her muscles were frozen with fear. "And why did he talk to you like you're old friends?" Bulla looked to the hardened face of the man who was still fleeing with her in his arms and felt his grip around her middle tighten.

_He went straight to super_ , she shivered, pressing her cheek to his shoulder strap while her mind raced for some rational and soothing explanation.

"I don't think he's following us," Bulla added after a few more minutes of silence.

"That can only be-" Turles responded throatily, slowing to a stop as they approached one of the lookouts and lowering the pair to the outdoor stairwell. "-because he doesn't want to." With her back to the dislodged wooden door, Bulla let out a heavy breath while she struggled to find stability in her legs. Turles kept his palms loosely at her sides, watching behind her while she quietly willed her knees to stop being so goddamn shaky.

"What is she doing here?"

Bulla twisted at the hip, relief washing over her at the sound of his voice. "Nice to see you too, Raditz," she breathed.  _Still in one piece_.

He wasn't even looking at her. Instead, he was glaring at his General. "I told you to ensure they stayed out of it," he chided.

She glanced between them _, Man_ , and eased her hands off Turles' shoulders while he slowly loosened his own grasp.  _Both of these guys are in full military mode tonight_. This was the closest to angry she'd ever seen him towards his right-hand man.

"I know." Turles' voice was husky as he reverted to his base form, stepping inside with an exhale. "But we've got more pressing things to focus on."

Bulla followed the pensive General into the tower, wandering through the trashed scene and dragging her fingers over a smashed digital display.  _What happened here?_  The room looked like a genuine bombsite with its toppled furniture and gaping roof holes. Next to her, was a pile of rubble where there should have been solid stone wall.

"He's back," Turles rasped, causing the heiress to pause while she cautiously looked to the two men.

Raditz' cool black orbs sprung open as he continued to stare at his fellow Saiyan, mouth parting slowly. "The rumours were true?"

"Either that," Turles replied, deep-toned cape swaying in the chilly breeze as he crossed his arms. "Or there's someone else out there who looks and acts a hell of a lot like him."

Bulla's gaze continued to travel between the two warriors, growing increasingly uneasy the longer either of them remained silent. The clenching of Raditz' jaw was the only tell that he was as perturbed as moodier his counterpart. "You need to leave," he eventually directed to the heiress. "Before he learns of your existence."

"Too late for that." Her eyes fell to a lone scouter that had rolled under one of the desks. "I'm already on his radar."

Raditz visibly stiffened as he returned his attention to Turles, who responded with a curt nod. With a gravelly exhale, Raditz looked to the night sky through the broken ceiling. "Dammit."

Stepping over to inspect the fallen scouter, Bulla glanced around for its owner. "Where are the sentinels?"

Tapping a few buttons, Raditz elicited a series of whirrs and beeps from the chunky gadget, prompting her to pass it over. He pressed it to his ear and, after a few seconds, uttered, " _Good man,"_ under his breath.

Bulla and Turles each observed while he listened intently to the captured audio, until the heiress twisted back around, hoping to find anything else that could be of use. She was still quietly assessing the aftermath of the struggle when she felt someone grab her arm. "You're bleeding," Raditz murmured, pulling the scouter off his face.

Bulla was entranced as his bold brows drew together, an abraded thumb grazing over her stomach. "It's not mine," she muttered, prompting him to lift his gaze. Clear eyes met opaque black, sending shivers down her spine and a welcome warmth to her belly. "Turles..." she gulped at the reminder, casting the General a discreet glance.

"We ran into some hostiles," he finished for her, peeling his eyes away from the intimate interaction and meeting the Kaiser's stern glare. "All different species. "

"Where?" Raditz straightened, though kept a light grasp on the heiress' waist. Aquamarine orbs were firmly trained on his ever sober expression, decidedly mesmerised by the subtle lines in his deceivingly weathered face and the particular fashion in which his mouth moved when he spoke. "Near the city?"

"In the forest," Turles answered, planting his feet. "South-side. And they've come prepared. Their armour conceals their location - both to our eyes and our scouters."

Raditz gave a slow nod. "That explains a few things," his low voice rumbled.

"Bulla can sense them," Turles added, causing both to look her way. "Though not without some level of interference." Her cheeks warmed when she realised Raditz had caught her silent appraisal. The fleeting urge to kiss him spiked, but the thought brought a lump to her throat as another uneasy wave rolled through. Involuntarily, her eyes drifted to Turles. "We're best to lure them to the ground," he suggested, crossing his arms. "It's easier to hear their movements. In the air, I was forced to wait for them to speak to get a lock on their positions."

"You took care of them easily enough, I take it?" Raditz absently slid his hand down Bulla's suit as he waltzed towards a jarring hole in the wall, staring out towards the settlement.

"Child's play," Turles responded, causing the heiress to wince when she replayed the evening's brutality in her head. One gory death after the other, and not a second of hesitation from the man in front of her. "Even the lowest ranked should be able to handle them, so long as they keep their wits about them."

"He's got something else up his sleeve in that case," the Kaiser muttered to himself, wheels clearly already beginning to turn.

"Without a doubt." Turles joined him at the tower edge. "It's just not Sibe without the mind games."

"What would he even want?" Bulla asked quietly, slipping between them.

All three squinted at the blinding glare from the new rising sun peeking over the horizon until she felt Turles' careful gaze on her profile. Tentatively, she rolled her head right to meet it, registering something warm and furry curling itself around her left leg at the same time.

Turles said nothing, though his eyes fell lazily to her neck, causing the heiress to finger her collar self-consciously and wonder if any tell-tale bruises were showing through despite the high neckline.

"You have much to learn, princess _._ " Raditz' tail tensed, giving the heiress a start. "Out here, everyone is only after one thing."

* * *

"Pan." Bulla gripped her friend's shoulders, giving them a shake. "Pan, you need to wake up."

" _Hnng,_ " Pan groaned into her pillow, pulling the covers high overhead and sinking deeper into her cocoon. " _Not yet._ "

Bulla yanked the blankets off altogether, letting them fall to a pile on the bedroom floor and earning herself a cry of disapproval.

"What are you doing!" Pan instantly erupted, death scowl firmly planted as she spun around and squeezed her fingers to the bedsheets. "The sun's barely even up!"

"We need to get out of here." Bulla scratched through her own belongings, tossing a spare pair of armour at the quarterling, chest piece narrowly missing the fuming girl's nose. "Throw this on as fast as you can and meet me at the front door when you're done. I'm going to go wake Goten up."

"Wh-"

Bulla didn't wait to hear her response, marching straight down the hallway towards the boys' room. Or maybe it should just be considered Goten's room considering Trunks hadn't slept in it once since they arrived on Crest. Once she reached his door, she briefly hesitated before pushing her apprehension aside and twisting the handle.

On entering, she found the older hybrid sprawled out on a single sleeper bed, one leg hanging down the side of the mattress while his arms stretched past his head. Immediately, she was reminded of evenings on the Odyssey, both of them spread out along the single sofa, staring mindlessly at the TV with full bellies and heavy lids. More than once she'd found herself talking to thin air when he failed to respond to some absent muttering of hers. With a roll of her eyes and curl of her lips, she could only snort at his penchant for dozing off outside of his own bed.

_Kami that feels like forever ago,_ she swallowed with a pang.  _Things were so much simpler then._ Her expression sank.  _We had no idea what we were in for._

She kept her head a healthy distance from his potential reach before pressing her hand to his shoulder and giving a shake. "Goten."

Long, dark eyelashes fluttered open while he faced the wall, taking a few moments to pull himself out of his sleepy daze. Slowly, he twisted his head to face her. "Bulla?" he rasped, throat still dry. "What are you doing in here?"

"Get dressed," she told him, seeking his skinsuit.

"What?" His brows drew together in confusion as he pushed into his hands. "Why? Is something happening?"

"I'll explain later." She gathered his chest plate and boots. "But for now we need to get out of here."

"Is this about last night?" he yawned, wiping a palm over his contorting face.

"Sort of," Bulla breathed, heading for the exit.

He pulled on the legs of his bodysuit, "Is everything okay?" while she hovered in the doorway, simultaneously thankful and silently damning the carefully placed blanket over his lap. "Your ki was going haywire."

She nodded as she leaned into the doorframe. "Honestly, I'm exhausted," she exhaled while he slipped on his chest plate, fiddling with the shoulder straps. "And kind of traumatised." Immediately, he lifted his head, a frown overtaking his expression as he rose to standing and stepped towards her.

"Did something happen with Turles?" His features faintly hardened as he took the time to eye her more carefully, reaching out a hand before seeming to think better of it and returning it to his side while his fingers curled into a tight fist.

"You could say that," she murmured, registering an immediate spike in his energy. "Oh!" Bulla raised both palms. "What I mean is, it involved him, yes. But not..." She scrunched her face and shook her head. "I just never imagined how ruthless they really are," she added with a shiver. Images of the fresh-faced soldier flashed through her mind's eye, sending her stomach somersaulting. " _Have you ever killed anyone before?_ " she uttered, barely audible.

" _What?_ " he whispered, warm eyes widening as he watched her with even deeper concern. "Of course not, why would you ask me that?"

_Is it really fair for me to hold this against them?_ she asked herself, attempting to shake off the second creeping shiver.  _I mean, how many people has my dad killed? And how often was it even out of protective duty?_

Bulla was forced out of her reverie when she heard nearby voices approach. Instinctively, she looked to the window but in her peripheral vision, she noted Goten was still observing  _her._ "Come on," she mumbled.

"So what's going on?" he eventually asked, following as she exited his room.

"Crest is about to be invaded." The words sounded absurd even to her own ears. "We've got some time to organise ourselves, but not much."

"Wh-  _What_?!" he stammered in disbelief, stopping in his tracks. "By who? And for what?"

"From what I've heard." She took a deep inhale, hearing Raditz' and Turles unsettlingly scathing voices in her head. "Some sociopath with next level telekinetic abilities." Goten reared at her words but still appeared unconvinced. "Apparently he never operates alone."  _What else did they say? Oh-_  "And his speciality is using technology to overcome his foes' strengths when he can't do it the old-fashioned way," she relayed as accurately as she could. "Remember that gas they got us with on Advent? Tricks picked up from this guy."

"So where are we going?" he questioned, making eye contact with Pan once they reached the living room. She was waiting near the window, peeking outside as hordes of Saiyan soldiers began marching through the streets.

There was a sudden knock at the door and all three froze. When it opened, Bulla was relieved to see a friendly face on the other side.

"You guys ready?" Rhubo asked, casual.

"I have no idea what's going on right now," Pan answered bluntly, admittedly appearing entirely disoriented. He simply nodded for her to head outside, holding the door open while the remaining halflings followed after her.

The four of them made their way down the dirt road towards the town centre, Pan and Rhubo ahead while he introduced himself and filled her in on the current happenings, and Bulla and Goten tailing, taking in the flurry of activity around them. The streets were positively packed with brawny Saiyans, rumbling amongst themselves while they rapped on doors to aid evacuation and sought their assigned squads.

As they passed the battle school, Bulla peered through the window, spying Fern, along with a few other Saiyans corralling the kids and ushering them deeper inside.  _All hands on deck._

"You're with us," Bulla heard a feminine voice and turned to face it. One of Goten's roommates had appeared amongst the commotion, hooking his arm while she dragged him back.

"I-" he hesitated as he looked between the two girls.

"Don't worry about her." Prin flippantly dismissed the heiress, pointing to a cluster of Saiyans behind them. "She's been allocated her role, I'm sure. Your priority right now is your squad. Let's go."

Bulla could only watch while he disappeared into the sea of dark hair and battle armour.

"Bulla." She heard Rhubo calling after her and picked up her pace. "Do you know where you're headed?" he asked, clapping at his chest plate while he rotated his shoulder. She gave a nod, shoving down the creeping trepidation that had been rising from the moment she'd left the lookout.

"Have you seen my brother anywhere?" Bulla asked out loud, still scanning the crowd for a particular shade of lavender. "He wasn't home when I got back. I haven't had a chance to fill him in."

"He's been assigned to a sister squad," Rhubo reassured, offering his charming smile. "Lucky me, I get to see the King's grandson fight with my own eyes."

"You'll be fighting with Trunks?" she lilted hopefully. There was definite comfort in knowing someone familiar would be at her brother's side.

"Indeed," his smile broadened, revealing a toothy grin.

"Do me a favour, will you?" Bulla wrapped her fingers around his wrist, feeling the jitteriness returning. "Look out for him." She met his gaze, unspoken desperation seeping out. "I can't go home without him."

He simply returned her request with a wink before jogging off to join the rest of his team.

"I have to go too," Pan breathed, eyes already fixed on a group in the distance. "I see a few of the others." She turned to face the heiress, wrapping her arms around the younger girl's shoulders and planting a peck on her cheek. "Kick butt out there, princess. Show them how the Earth Saiyans do it."

A smile bloomed on the heiress' face at the comment. "See you on the battlefield, Sweet P."

Pan tore away, blowing a kiss before sprinting over to her squad.

As she watched the quarterling assimilate, Bulla gave herself one final push.  _This is it, Bulla,_ she inhaled.  _The real deal. Like Turles said._ She took another breath.  _No more play fighting._

* * *

Bulla absently tugged at the base of her chest armour, nodding along to Turles' instructions to his Captains while the rest of their delegates listened with fervour. Ironically, she was standing amongst the very Saiyans who dragged her onto the fleet in the first place. Just a few steps ahead was Auber himself. Lifting her gaze, the heiress glossed over the rest of the vast and varied landscape. To the east of her location, arid earth and low shrubbery. In the west, an expanding sea of green firs, only growing the closer you got to the city.

Immediately to their right, Bardock was issuing his own orders. Five white capes watched him with fixed attention, unwavering focus in each of their expressions. Goten was amongst the crowd, listening with equal intensity while he stood clustered with a few others Bulla recognised from his dorm.

Beyond them, she saw Nappa, his deep voice vaguely reaching her ears as he punched his fist into his palm with gritted teeth. Trunks was front and centre, positioned next to Caya and tailed by the rest of her fiery squad. All signs of jest were entirely absent from the mischievous group, further reminding the heiress of the solemnity of their current situation.

Furthest away was Cinna, small mouth speaking with passion as she relayed her plan of attack to her own teams. Even amongst the plethora of dark heads, Bulla managed to pinpoint her closest friend, deep-toned eyes firm but sparkling.

She soon sensed Raditz' arrival, watching as he scattered dust beneath him until gold-tipped boots touched down on fine dirt. He marched towards Cinna's crew and spoke briefly with the commander herself before answering a few soldiers' questions and continuing onward. After exchanging words with Nappa, the older General gave a firm pat on the shoulder.

Raditz proceeded to his father and the two men spoke seriously before casting Bulla a steady glance. She met their gazes cautiously, straining to hear what they could possibly have to say about her at a time like this, but couldn't discern anything through all the other ambient chatter. After a few more words from the older Saiyan, both went silent and Raditz lowered his eyes to the ground. Their conversation ended after Bardock pressed his palm to his elder son's face, giving a final knowing look and eliciting a single nod from the Kaiser.

When Raditz reached Turles, his attention was already on the princess and she found herself navigating a maze of broad shoulders when Raditz gestured for her to join them at the front of the cluster.

"You're confident with the scouter?" he queried once she reached them, instantly prompting her to bring her hand to the strange device and adjust its position over her ear.

She slowly nodded her head, "Confident enough," before he raised his hand, bringing rough fingers to her chin and tilting upward. Aquamarine orbs widened at the display, but she kept her eyes fixed on his own.

"Keep your head," he told her.

"Of course." Her brows pinched together.  _He called me up here just to tell me that?_

"I mean it," he added firmly, expression more sober than she ever remembered seeing it. "All it takes is a single moment of dropping your guard." He absently dragged his thumb across her cheek and a sweet warmth rippled up from her core, breaking as a smile on her face when she realised what hid behind his words. With an ungraceful snort, the heiress' cheeks tinted pink.

"You laugh?" He reared his head.

Her smile spread to a full-fledged grin, reaching all the way to her eyes. Standing on the tips of her toes, she grazed her hand over one bony cheek and lightly pressed her lips to the other before pulling back and bopping her finger to the tip of his nose. Without any further words from either of them, she pivoted on her boot and sought Turles' ki, joining the rest of his men as they floated towards the sky.

She sped past the others, catching up to Turles at the head of the formation. "Couldn't help but notice you weren't paying attention to a single thing I said," he grumbled.

"I got the gist," she offered flippantly, suddenly feeling like a high school student all over again, getting scolded by her testy teacher for flirting with a classmate instead of following the lesson. " _I_ couldn't help but notice you don't have a single female soldier amongst your underlings," she gibed back, watching for his reaction with a teasing smirk. "I can't imagine why?" Bulla pressed her index finger to her cheek in faux-thought. He cast her a look, clearly unamused by the comment. "Let me guess: Raditz picks your squadrons." She let out a stifled snicker when he glanced away tellingly.

"Say the plan back to me," he commanded, skating right over her goading and eliciting an eye roll from the heiress.

_Fine, lame-o._

"Crest has been divvied up into four regions, or rings," she began after an inhale. "Starting from the town centre and working progressively outward." She turned back when she sensed Pan's energy on the move, heading in the opposite direction. "Cinna's squads are operating in the outermost zone, meant to take the bulk of the heat while she and a few other trained operatives slide behind enemy lines and dismantle their efforts from the inside out."

She paused to gauge his reaction, earning herself a, "Keep going," while his eyes remained fixed on the buildings ahead.

"Nappa's teams catch whoever's managed to slip through, providing support for Cinna if they're overwhelmed. Extra muscle for the front line."

"What else?" he prompted, now carefully scanning the earth below.

"Bardock's teams are watching over the forests that border the city," she continued, walking herself through the rest of the outline in her head. "Patrolling the area to ensure no one reaches any civilians."

"And what are  _we_  doing?" Turles asked finally, turning his head to watch her answer.

"We'll be stationed closer to zone one, working in conjunction with Bardock to keep an eye on the town," she responded calmly. "What?" Bulla frowned when he kept staring at her, despite providing what she thought to be a satisfactory rundown.

"What are your orders if you come across a hostile?"

She looked away with a groan.

"There's no room for hesitation," he lectured. "You falter, you die."

Bulla scoffed.  _Everything is so black and white with these guys._ "I'm not that easy to overpower, Turles," she mumbled as they began their descent on a nearby hill that overlooked the settlement.

"If not you, then a member of your squad," he snarled. "Or a civilian. Execute as readily as you breathe."

She baulked at the comparison, edging away when he reached for her arm.

"I swear upon the Gods, Bulla," he warned, voice dropping to a rumble. "If you pull any of what I saw last night, you will end up getting one of us killed."

She glared back at him while he gripped her elbow. "I get it," she asserted before yanking it out of his grasp. "Okay? I get it."

"Good." He straightened, slowly pivoting as he cast a gaze over the town. "Another thing," he added before twisting his head back to face her. "You were far too wasteful with your energy this morning," Turles chastised, giving the heiress pause. "In a real battle, you have no idea how long you'll be expected to go without a break. Are you following what I'm saying?"

Bulla nodded.

"Every last drop is crucial," he continued, watching her in earnest. "And could be the deciding factor between you living to fight another day or perishing at someone else's hand."

She nodded once more.

"Keep those senses sharp," he concluded, tapping at her temple. "Call in anything out of the ordinary. I'll be close." With that, the General took off and headed West.

With a long exhale, Bulla crossed her arms and kicked a lone stone. In the back of her mind, she sought the locations of her fellow Earthlings. Pan and Trunks were far from her current position but reassuringly near to each other.

Closest to the heiress was Goten, which brought its own mix of comfort and consternation.

For the upcoming battle, each hybrid was expected to act as sentinels in their own right - using their rare and refined Ki sensing abilities to alert their assigned leaders of approaching intruders since scouters would be of little use outside of interpersonal communication. In addition, they would be assisting in keeping invaders neutralised - Trunks and Pan in particular.

Bulla looked to the sky as armoured bodies flew overhead, members of Turles' various squads arriving in succession.

One of them split from the others and descended on her little spot before informing her that the two of them would be partnered. Bulla suspected she recognised him from Advent - not the best shared history - but would have to let that go for now.

"The name's Rocco," he told her casually.

"I'll call you Roc," she decided. "Since that's what I wanted to bash your head in with the first time we met." That earned her an approving snort.

Surveying their surrounds, he commented, "We're too exposed here," and rose once more. "Better to get eyes on them first, rather than the other way round."

"Alright." Bulla followed when he headed towards the treeline, the start of the Southern forest, and joined when he floated to a thick branch. After finding her own, the heiress leaned the back of her head to stiff bark with an exhale, feet planted and knees bent to her chest. Resting her eyes, Bulla mentally swept the area.

_Everything's so quiet,_ she noted.  _Maybe they jumped the gun?_

* * *

Bulla jolted when Roc shook her shoulder. Rubbing both hands up her face, she clenched at her roots.  _God, I'm tired._

"There's someone coming," he warned her.

" _I don't sense anyone,"_ she replied, strained eyes raking over the ground below, sceptical. Sure enough, she began to hear rustling too. Readying herself, Bulla held her breath.

" _Wait._ " She pressed her fingers to Roc's chest plate when he shifted to the balls of his feet, no doubt preparing himself to launch out of the tree and right down onto the potential invader. "Goten?" she called out.

The demi-Saiyan paused, "Bulla?" and glanced up.

"What are you doing here?" She cocked her head.

It seemed Goten and her partner were already acquainted as they exchanged a brief nod.

"Looking for you," he answered from the ground, meeting her perplexed gaze with his own, careful but reassuringly open.

"Why?" Bulla instantly stiffened, "Has something happened to one of the others?" and wrestled the urge to hop down, only too ready to fly straight to either hybrid's signature. Both kis were steady but ticking up. The first wave had arrived according to Turles' earlier update.

"No," Goten answered. "Well I don't know," he corrected, watching her tentatively. "That's not why I'm here."

"Then why were you looking for me?" Bulla frowned as her pulse eased, shoulders beginning to loosen.

The older halfling brought a hand to his brow as he squeezed one eye shut, observing her through the other. "We need to talk."

Bulla reared, "About what?" and glanced to her squadmate cautiously. Rocco, in turn, was looking between the two hybrids with evident doubt.

"About us," Goten replied simply. "About Advent. About everything."

_What?_  Her eyes shot open, wide as dinner plates. " _Now_?" she blurted in disbelief.

"We've put it off long enough, don't you think?" he countered.

"Sure." Bulla flattened her palm to her forehead, "But Goten," and shook her head side-to-side. "Seriously…  _Now?_ "

"I'm just gonna start talking," he shrugged, causing the heiress to throw another wary glance to her assigned partner.

"I like you, Bulla."

She froze.

"Can you excuse us?" Bulla murmured as she slowly lowered herself to the mulch below. She kept her voice low while she led the duo out of the thicket, "Can we maybe not do this here?" and towards the forest exit - as far from eavesdropping ears as possible.

"I like you," Goten repeated once they came to a stop. "And you know what?" he continued. "I think you like me too."

Bulla winced. Of all possible times to have this conversation, now seemed easily amongst the worst. On top of the past week's building strain, she had barely had any sleep the night before. To say she was running on fumes would be an understatement.

"It was no accident what happened that night at the hotel room," Goten spoke calmly, deep black eyes travelling between her own. "I knew exactly what I was doing." She heard a ring in her ears as her hairs bristled. "And so did you."

Turning her head, Bulla clutched both elbows in her hands, unthinkingly hugging her arms closer to her chest. "I thought…" She took a slow inhale. "I thought you said you weren't interested in a repeat..."

"What?" Goten exclaimed, face twisting in confusion. "When did I say-" He threw his head back with a groan. "That's not what I meant," he moaned, wiping both hands down his face.

"Then what  _did_  you mean?" It came out squeakier then she would have liked.

Goten exhaled as he brushed his palm over the back of his neck. "I don't think it really matters anymore."

Silence fell upon the pair while both kept their gazes well off the other.

_This is certainly going well,_ Bulla thought to herself grazing her thumb over her bicep.

"You know what I've learned since we've left earth?" the older halfling eventually volunteered. "Stumbling our way through missions and barely landing on our feet after each one?"

She reluctantly lifted her gaze.

"You're even smarter than I thought," he stated. "Really damn bright, Bulla." It was technically a compliment, but his expression wasn't genial. "And you've had me spinning in circles trying to figure out why, for years, we've all had to sit and watch you make one bad decision after the other when you  _clearly_ know better."

Her eyes tensed at his uncharacteristically harsh judgement. " _Excuse_ me?"

"Pan was always wild." He took a step closer. "She chased thrills and adventure since before she could even talk, but there was always something different about your brand of…" Goten hesitated. "Fuck up."

The ring in her ears shifted to a heavy drumming.

"It made no sense. And all these jerks over the years," he continued. "One asshole after the other."

_God, he's really going for the jugular._ Bulla turned away altogether, suddenly deciding that she was under no obligation to just take it while she was shamed by, of all people, Son Goten.

"And then I realised it." He grabbed her shoulder, interrupting her exit. "You're looking for something," Goten stated, causing the heiress to falter. "Some _one,_ " he corrected.

Her heart was beginning to pound as she clamped down on the inside of her cheek, heat from his hand still radiating through her shoulder.

"And yet every boyfriend you've ever had, you've kept at arm's length," he spoke more quietly. "I've seen it with my own eyes."

"What are you talking about," she finally uttered, keeping her gaze on the deep green of the dense forest.

"You know what I'm talking about," Goten pressed, barely an ounce of his usual softness present. "Why do you think you do it? Do you even know?"

She shrugged his hand away and continued forward, a tempest beginning to brew in her gut that warned her to proceed with caution. Vaguely, she sensed Raditz' energy nearby. Rising.

"You're so much like your dad." Goten's tone shifted but she suspected his observation wasn't necessarily meant entirely favourably.

"Go back to your squad, Goten," Bulla grumbled, keeping her back to the hybrid as she strode further into the open.

"Trunks was eight the first time Vegeta hugged him. Has he ever told you that?"

Bulla pivoted and shot the older demi-Saiyan a scowl.  _Now you're trying to drag my father through the mud too?_ "What does  _that_  have to do with anything?"

"It was such a big deal to him." A small smile teased at the end of Goten's mouth. "He lived for Vegeta's approval back then even though he was such an ass. He still is, but man." The smile only grew as he seemed to recall fond memories of days before her time. "For years I think he hated how much he loved your mother and brother."

Bulla was watching him with marked scepticism.  _Where is he going with this?_

"They did the bulk of the heavy lifting." Goten soldiered on, unaffected by Bulla's frosty demeanour. "But when  _you_  came along." He raised both eyebrows at the younger halfling, sending a swirl to her stomach. "All bets were off."

The lump in her throat was still present, but tension eased ever so slightly at the mention of her Vegeta's softer side.

"You melted him, Bulla. Turned the coldest man I'd ever met into a total puddle."

All this talk of her father only succeeded in making her throat clench and inner ears ache. "Why are you saying all this?" she mumbled, clutching her arm once more.

"Because this is what you do." His smile was now completely untethered as he gazed at her, Son warmth back in full force. "You walk in on people's hearts uninvited. This blue-haired whirlwind, storming through and breaking down all our doors so we're entirely at your mercy." He reached for her hand and tugged the heiress closer.

"But here's the thing that no one seems to realise." When he lifted his fingers to brush at her cheek, she instinctively pulled away and slowly lowered her lids.

"You're still your father's daughter. Proud as anything." His scouter began to beep, but he ignored the alert, simply dropping the gadget to the leaves. "But you hate being vulnerable."

"Stop," she muttered.

"So you flit from one doomed situation to the next." He ignored her warning. "You don't want to go near  _anything_  that could get too real."

"Shut up, Goten." She crushed her teeth together as the tenuous hold on her temper slipped.

"I've seen you do this with  _everything_ ," he persisted. Gone were the days, apparently, where the two demi-Saiyans actually made an attempt to avoid overstepping when it came to personal matters. "You're the hybrid that had all the potential but you're terrified of what would happen if you ever gave anything a genuine chance."

Tiny needles pricked at her eyeballs as Bulla exhaled as slowly as she could manage. She refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing that his words had any effect.

"Trunks and I never ended up hearing your answer before we all got separated, but that's why you came out here isn't it." He finally relented, staring back at the CC heiress as she squeezed her quivering fists. "Deep down, you're ready to see what you were really made of."

The fire from her core rose up, threatening to burn right through her eyes as glared at the older demi-Saiyan.

"You've got me all figured out, huh?" she spat, wearing a snarl that completely smothered her human half. "We spend a few weeks in space together and suddenly you're an expert on Bulla Briefs?" She spun around, marching any direction would take her further from her brother's oldest friend. "Please, spare me."

"Bulla, I get it," Goten eased, following after her. "I know what it's like to walk in the shadow of a brilliant older brother. To worry that you'll never amount to half of what he's accomplished." His voice was so gentle she wanted to scream.

_Don't you dare pity me,_ she seethed.

"Or question your limits when you see the impossible heights of your literal God-tier father," he endured, maintaining his grip on her hand even after she shook him away. "So you tell yourself it's better to not even try. At least you don't need to see yourself fail that way. Am I wrong?"

She didn't answer.

"You and I aren't so different, Bulla," he soothed, sending a shiver spiralling down her spine. "You don't chase after what you really want either."

"I've heard enough," Bulla muttered under her breath, still showing him her back as she stomped towards the hill Turles first dropped her off at. "You don't know anything."

"Do you think I didn't know about you and my uncle?" Goten called out, causing her to flinch. "Did you think I didn't hear the rumours? Or notice how he looked at you." Her feet fixed themselves to the dirt as the comment quaked through her bones. "I felt your energies together in his room the first morning the ships were interlocked for Kami's sake." He let out an exasperated laugh. "I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt." Goten shook his head. "I'm nothing if not a seasoned pro at ignoring gossip that surrounds both of the Briefs siblings."

_He's known this whole time?_

Yet more quiet seconds passed.

"What are you doing, Bulla," he sighed, shoulders slumping. "Have you forgotten who these Saiyans really are? What they do? How he lied right to your face about your own brother."

Bulla visibly recoiled - he may as well have slapped her right across the cheek. She could definitely have gone without the reminder of how readily she fell into the Kaiser's bed.

"You never would have done something like that, right?" she bit. Despite her best efforts, a rogue tear finally escaped and she quickly wiped it away. "Good Son that you are." Bulla kept her voice as steady as she could, "I know he's a bastard. I've told him as much enough times," and finally turned back with a deep scowl, large aquamarine orbs glassy but firm. "But as much as I try to," Bulla inhaled. "I can't bring myself to hate him."

The corners of Goten's face sank. "Bulla," he breathed, reaching for her hand once more, free fingers floating to her chin. He tried to get their gazes in line but she kept her own stiffly averted. "Eventually you're going to have to start thinking about tomorrow. And there's no tomorrow with these guys."

_You think I don't know that?_ Her lids swelled with stubborn tears.

As she glowered at the older halfling, shaking from the whirling turbulence she'd been restraining since their conversation started, she spotted the man in question. He was trailed by a swarm of adversaries she hadn't even noticed and alternating between engaging in hand-to-hand combat and shooting off I'm random bursts, barely breaking a sweat.

_What is he doing?_  Suddenly hypnotized, she watched as his perpetually narrowed eyes widened when they landed on her, observing the parting of his lips when he let out an earth-shattering roar.

**"Turles!"**

In the next moment, the wind was knocked straight out of her as something akin to a boulder collided with her side, sending her skidding along the dirt.

Not a second later, she heard an explosion mere millimetres from her original position.

As she blinked her eyes open, a thick cloud of dust obstructing her vision, Bulla realised who was on top of her.

"Where is your head?" Turles boomed, seething at the heiress as he rose to his feet and pulled her up with him. "That would have been a direct hit!"

"Hey," Goten interrupted, forearm over his eyes as he attempted to keep the fine granules from getting in. "It wasn't her fault."

"You're right!" the General barked, attention now firmly trained on the older halfling. "It's yours." He gave Goten an aggressive shove. "What the fuck are you doing in my territory, distracting my soldiers."

"She's not  _your_ soldier." Goten's jaw tensed as he regained his footing, expression growing taut at the pure-blooded Saiyan.

"Right now she is," Turles argued, voice dropping low. "And you very nearly got her maimed." He bore his teeth as he leaned in. "Take your amateur ass back to Bardock," he growled. "Before I kick it there myself."

Bulla threw the General a look at the inflammatory taunt.

"I think we've established pretty clearly which of us is the amateur," Goten responded, meeting Turles' unspoken challenge head-on.

Before she knew it, the two were back on the ground, rolling along loose clay and kicking up yet more dust.

"You're delusional, half-breed," Turles sneered, laying a meaty punch into Goten's cheek. "You think you won that fight on merit? It takes more than thirty minutes on the mat to take me down." He covered the demi-Saiyan's entire face with his open hand, forcing the back of his head into the dirt. "We were testing you."

"Stop!" Bulla yelled, grabbing the General by the shoulder and hauling him off her fellow Earthling. "You want to lecture  _me_ about wasting energy?" Once he was on his feet, she kept her fingertips pressed to his armour, ready to intercept if he made another move. "What's more wasteful than fighting a friendly?" she chastised, looking between the two warriors.

Goten wiped the back of his hand under his nostrils as he maintained an incensed glare on the General, shoulders heaving and breath ragged.

"Goten, you should get back to your post," Bulla muttered, causing him to transfer his gaze back to the heiress. Her throat cinched when she saw his brows pinch together, betraying his disappointment.

A sudden disturbing soar in her brother's energy caused both halflings to swivel. Neither seemed to notice that the larger battle was slowly working its way west, inadvertently bringing Nappa and Cinna's squads towards the city. Each halfling watched in bewilderment as Nappa's mountainous body sailed towards the ground, navy cape flapping wildly beneath him. Trunks acted quickly, shooting after the sinking Saiyan and catching him before he crashed, unguarded, into the forest below.

Immediately, Bardock rose from the copse, inciting yet another brand of adversary Bulla was entirely unfamiliar with. Extendable metallic arms reaching, grabbing and dodging with unsettling success.

_What the heck is going on?_

When Goten glimpsed his outnumbered grandfather, catching one seemingly avoidable blow after the other, he abandoned any semblance of resentment for his doppelganger and launched towards the dirty fray.

"Leave him," Turles ordered, squeezing Bulla's wrist as she instinctively attempted to follow. "We need to head east."

"Where did everyone come from?" Bulla uttered, unable to wrap her head around how quickly everything was unravelling. "There was nothing for hours and suddenly they're right on top of us?" She sought Raditz' energy signature - it seemed he was already travelling east himself - and turned to face Turles questioningly.

"There's a lot that isn't adding up," he rumbled, attention still on Bardock's brawl. "Nappa should not have been overthrown so easily," he added under his breath, eyes tensing in scepticism. After a few more seconds, he looked to the heiress, 'Let's go," and began to levitate.

Bulla joined him but cast a doubtful gaze over the settlement below. "What about our mission?"

"Change of plans," Turles responded huskily, keeping his gaze ahead while he picked up the pace. "You and the rest of my men will cover Nappa's squads. They're being pressured west and we can't have that."

"I thought Cinna was already on it?" Bulla frowned, head rolling right despite herself and spying Goten's skirmish, a grandfather-grandson tag team for the ages.

"We lost touch with Cinna forty minutes ago," he replied, causing the heiress' heart to jump. "If Nappa's down, the frontline squads are operating without a head."

_Already?!_

"Bardock can handle the borders. I'll have to lead from the front." He looked austerely to the heiress. "Let's see how much of the king really lives on in you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So first things first, I realise updates have slowed down somewhat. I won't bore you with the whys since that's not what you're here for, I'm sure, but I want to assure you that I'm still aiming for weekly updates though may need to stretch that to fortnightly occasionally as we approach the end. Regardless, I hope you're still enjoying the ride!
> 
> Feedback is invaluable and always appreciated.


	26. Shatter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I'm still here, still writing. This one took a bit longer, buuut. You'll see why.
> 
> If my mapping is correct (hint, it's never been correct) we don't have very long to go until our adventure ends. I've got two more planned after this and then it's over :( ish.
> 
> As always, a sincere thank you for your support and encouragement thus far. It makes such a difference.
> 
> You may want to grab a snack and blanket for this one. Get cozy, it's a biggun'.

As she stood with her back against the sandstone, arms folded and lids lowered, Pan let out a steady exhale. The constant breeze sent loose grains of sand tapping at her borrowed chest plate, but it was a welcome wind. They were so exposed out here in the arid canyon, her fringe was permanently plastered to her forehead.

She slid her index finger into her collar, rolling it along the spandex to allow some of the cool air to lick at damp skin.

_How has Bulla handled wearing this catsuit all this time?_ she sighed.  _Wouldn't even take my spare CC gear when I offered it to her before. Weirdo._  Thoughts of the heiress sent her mind wandering to the previous few days' observations, along with Bulla's distracted mood from the moment she'd landed.  _Definitely to do with a guy,_ Pan decided.

_Hmm._

_The broody one,_ she considered, trying to recall his name.  _Turles?_  She'd seen the way Bulla blushed when he leaned in close that night at the tavern - the two huddled in their dark corner, voices hushed - or how he practically  _dragged_  the heiress out of her seat a few minutes later. Most present had watched the two leave, not least of which Pan's newly discovered uncle.  _And that guy's definitely part of the drama,_ the quarterling filed, recalling the fleeting twitch in Raditz' eyes while Turles held his hand to Bulla's back and drove her through the doors.  _Though I wouldn't peg him as her usual type,_ she mused.  _Way too serious._

Perhaps that wasn't such a bad thing, considering Bulla's track record.  _Maybe it's one-sided?_ If that was the case though, why was the heiress a distracted mess when she returned from their private meet-up?

Large deep-brown eyes flew open suddenly and the quarterling hit the button at her temple. "One kilometre South. Around twenty, possibly more. Heading west," she relayed. "More coming from the South-East." Ensuring her ki was masked, Pan hopped to another outcrop, keeping her back pressed and breathing even.

"Nice work, Cupcake," Cinna's voice came through the earpiece and Pan had to stifle a snort at the enduring nickname. For a mighty Saiyan in charge of her own fleet, the sole female Commander was unexpectedly impish. "Let's cut them off." Pan vaguely wondered if Trunks missed being in the limelight, since she had unashamedly stolen it the moment she'd invited herself aboard Cinna's ship.

Slipping her head around the corner, Pan narrowed her eyes.  _Dammit, I've lost them again._ She held out her arm when she sensed some of her squadmates approaching. "Give it a second," she spoke out loud. "They should be here soon."

After a few minutes, she called, "Let's go!" shooting ahead with an eager grin.

The quarterling sent out a handful of energy balls, each one marking a target for her respective teammates, and heard the abrupt expulsion of air from her first opponent's lungs when she buried her knee in his stomach.  _This is only six of them,_ she realised with a needle of doubt.  _Where are the rest?_

With an elbow to the head, he was knocked out cold and Pan was immediately onto the next one.  _They came all the way here to pick a fight with_ us _,_ she reminded herself haughtily.  _I'm only giving them what they're asking for._ In the corner of her eye, she caught her Commander's movement as Cinna soundlessly darted from ridge to ridge, a small dark blur dancing along deep orange rock.

Pushing forward, Pan and the others ran ahead, tasked with keeping the coast clear while Cinna sought a way into the heart of the operations.  _Where did they even come from?_ The quarterling surveyed the area, noting nothing but vast openness. Not even a single tree to hide a space pod behind, let alone the massive ship that would have been required to house hordes of invading minions.  _Well, whatever. They ain't got nothing on us anyway._

"We got some of them," Pan reported through her scouter. "But the rest must have split off before they reached us. They got lucky."

She heard static in her ear. "We'll find them," Cinna replied.

These outside soldiers were more successful at evading than she'd been expecting. Two hours and a handful of scuffles later, the Saiyans weren't any closer to finding the source. "They're literally showing up out of nowhere," Pan exhaled, wiping the back of her hand over her brow as her eyes glossed over the flat landscape. "And a few always manage to slip around us." She turned her head, spying the rest of Cinna's delegates while they milled around a few hundred metres back. There was a lull in activity, so the others were taking the opportunity to rehydrate and see to minor wounds while Pan and the Commander sought any sign of disturbance that suggested aircraft had been nearby.

She saw Cinna flinch as she slapped her hand to her neck and scrape the remnants of whatever insect she'd killed off her shoulder. "What the-?" The pure-blooded Saiyan was pinching something between her fingers, eyes narrowing while she assessed the speck.

"Whoa!" Pan stumbled backwards when someone appeared in front of her without any prior warning - tall and almost blindingly reflective. With dilated orbs, she watched in shock as sharp, talon-like claws reached for her Commander, covering her entire face with its shiny hand. "Hey!" The quarterling immediately launched while Cinna let out a muffled moan, swiping at the rigid body to no avail.

As Pan's punch closed in on its lustrous head, white flame enveloping her tightened fist, it disappeared as quickly as it came.

Nothing but empty space remained where Cinna had been drinking from her flask only moments earlier. " **Cinna!** " Pan screamed, swivelling left and right while she sought the older woman's ki. When she came up blank, her blood ran cold.

Stabbing at her scouter, she yelled, "Nappa! Nappa! Can you hear me?" The other end was dead. " _Fuck!_ "

She tore back for the others, leaving a thick plume of dust in her wake while she held her forearm over her brow.

Grabbing the arm of the first person she reached, Pan exclaimed, "Is your scouter working?!"

"Uh. Ye-?"

"Get Nappa!" she demanded frantically. "Now!"

The confused Saiyan edged away slightly, tapping at her own scouter while Pan's heart raced. Her comrade reared then, pulling her scouter off her ear and rotating it in her hands sceptically. "It just died on me," she frowned. "Like, right now."

" **Fuck!"**  Pan screeched again, her voice echoing off the walls of the surrounding canyon.

* * *

"They've been at it on and off for a while now," Trunks reported, attempting to watch the scene from the peak of a craggy cliff-side. Cinna's soldiers' energies were easy enough to follow, but they were too far away to track visually. The persistent breeze sent loose strands of lavender skating across his face, and he tucked a few behind his ear. "But it seems they're handling themselves well enough." Pan was only using a fraction of her strength during her fights, from what he could tell, and her energy appeared reassuringly steady. Cinna's too. Trunks looked to the man next to him. "What are you thinking?"

Nappa had his arms folded while his eyes remained fixed on the plateau below. "I think you're onto something," his deep voice rolled. "This is all too easy."

"I've put forward a few ideas already," Trunks replied, observing him carefully. "But obviously it's your call." He heard a rumble from the General's throat as the burly Saiyan considered his next move.

"Clearly this Sibe person knows the Saiyans' weaknesses," Trunks added, absently checking in on Bulla and Goten's energy signatures.  _Keep an eye on her, man._  "Otherwise they wouldn't bother coming here with tech that skirts your best means of advantage." Nappa nodded in agreement. "But they're not exactly giving you guys a run for your money either with such mediocre fighters."

"He always said the Saiyans were the best soldiers he ever had," Nappa responded throatily. "These may be the strongest maggots he could round up to face us." A satisfied smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth as a single slim eyebrow raised. "Defeating him with a quarter of our military," he laughed, "Pathetic," and turned his back on the distant crew.

Trunks followed when Nappa descended the rocky hill, casting his gaze over the virgin landscape.  _You don't get views like this in West City,_  he acknowledged with a soft smile. The CC head had to admit he liked it out here. Crest was quiet. Tranquil. Private. It was the longest stretch he'd gone since teenagehood without obnoxious paparazzi clamouring for gossip or screaming fangirls throwing themselves at his feet. Who knew it was possible to fall asleep without having to speculate what headline he'd wake up to the next morning?

_I wonder if Bulla feels the same._ She'd always handled the media with the poise and indifference one would expect of a social queen bee, but the two had commiserated over cutthroat rumours more than once over the years - though not recently, he considered remorsefully; he'd barely seen her before the three left earth _._

Trunks ran his fingers through his hair as he recalled their harrowing flight through the asteroid field, and how adamant she was that  _he_ needed to be the one to bring the trio to safety.  _She sells herself short._ He exhaled through his nose,  _The girl's difficult,_ and pictured her brilliant, smiling face, teasing him as he attempted to relax along the single Odyssey sofa.  _But she's exceptional. Doesn't even realise it._

_When did she grow up so fast?_

He repressed a grumble at the reminder of Bulla's endless string of loser ex-boyfriends.  _I guess everyone else noticed before I did._  Not a single brain cell amongst the lot of them.  _Why does she always shoot so low?_  He paused his own train of thought as his face scrunched.  _Or maybe not always…_

More than once he'd caught the reticent Saiyan leader eyeing her a little too long. He reminded himself to let it go - male attention was hardly a rarity in Bulla's world and it would be poor form to go inserting himself into her personal affairs. But the tension between the two left him unsettled, especially considering the guy was a relative of Goten's.  _Hopefully I'm on the wrong track there._

He snapped his head suddenly, sensing frantic fluctuations in Pan's energy. Immediately, he engaged his scouter. "Pan, what's wrong?" His brows pulled together. There was no answer on the other side, but the crackling in his ear told him his scouter was still online, so he changed tactics. "Cinna?"

Nothing.

Trunks hopped down the rest of the massive boulder, reaching his de-facto leader. "Can you get hold of Cinna?" He grabbed the older Saiyan's shoulder. "I think something's just happened."

Nappa tapped at his own scouter. "Cinna," he spoke, standing firm while he waited for response. When no answer came through, he looked to the demi-Saiyan sceptically. "Caya," he tried again. This time Trunks heard someone on the other side. "Go find out what's happened to Cinna. We can't make contact." He paused. "Think she'll need back-up?" he directed at the hybrid.

"Do it," Trunks responded, itching to find the quarterling himself and ensure everything was okay. He understood, however, that he was needed as Nappa's eyes out here and couldn't simply abandon his post at the first sign of trouble for one of his fellow Earthlings. "We've got enough manpower to hold things down."

"Take the rest of your squad," Nappa ordered through the gadget. "Report back if you need extra hands."

Within a few minutes, Trunks spotted a dozen Saiyans flying overhead.

"It's probably just a malfunction," Nappa reassured, eyeing the lavender-haired demi-Saiyan carefully. "Happens from time to time. We picked up a new batch of scouters on our way to Crest so there may be a few duds amongst them."

"Right," Trunks murmured, keeping his gaze on the tiny dots as they neared the horizon.

* * *

"What do you mean she's  _gone?_ " Caya scoffed, eyeing the quarterling sceptically.

"I mean it exactly how it sounds!" Pan asserted, tensing her fists. "The two of us were walking along the plateau." She threw her arm out in the direction of their earlier scouring. "When this  _thing_ just appeared out of nowhere." Her heart was still racing as she relayed her version of events. "It grabbed her and disappeared all within a freaking second."

"And you can't sense her anywhere?" Caya continued to question, crossing her arms.

"No!"

"What did this  _thing_ look like?" The squad Captain cocked an eyebrow.

"Big!" Pan blurted, spreading her arms. "Tall. Taller than Nappa. Its hand was bigger than her goddamn head!" Her eyes widened as her ears drummed. "And it was made of steel or something."

"So it was some kind of cyborg?"

The more questions Nappa's Captain asked, the less convinced she sounded of Pan's tale, and the quarterling was growing increasingly impatient. "I know cyborgs," Pan answered, grinding her teeth together. "And this...  _whatever_ wasn't anything like them. It looked like an actual machine. With rods instead of bones and wires in its joints." She pressed her hand to her forehead and took a breath to regain some steadiness. "I could see through its skeleton and it didn't even have organs."

Caya nodded slowly, presumably stitching an image together in her head. "And you're the only one who saw it," she finally voiced. "No one else was with you?"

"Just us," Pan exhaled, frustrated that she hadn't acted faster. Done more.

"Show me where it happened."

The two women levitated above the parched earth and floated towards Cinna's last known whereabouts. "It was somewhere around here," Pan told her, casting a gaze over the surrounds while Caya dropped to her haunches and brushed her hand over scorched orange sand.

"What's this?" she muttered, pinching something off the ground and straightening to her full height.

Pan stepped up, curious, while both women squinted at the strange remains. "Could be the bug that bit her on the neck before she was taken," the quarterling offered.

"This is no bug," Caya mumbled, dropping the find in her open palm and rolling it around the centre. "We don't have anything that looks like this on Crest." After a few more seconds, she pressed her finger to her scouter. "General," she spoke.

Pan watched her in anticipation.

"General Nappa, can you hear me?" Caya tapped again. When no response came, she pulled the gadget off her ear and proceeded to whack it against the heel of her palm. "Stupid scouters," she grumbled.

A ripple snaked its way up Pan's spine. "They're back," she told the Captain, head swivelling to the rest of their group and prompting Caya to shift her attention. "They're almost halfway to Trunks' post," she noted in surprise.  _How did they get so far west without me noticing?_

Both immediately shot towards the others, Pan desperate to sound the alarm before anyone was caught off guard

"On your feet!" Caya called out as she approached, engulfed in white heat and tearing past the quarterling. "Another wave comes. The scouters are unreliable," her voice boomed. "So ensure you stay within your squads." All eyes were on the Captain while she gave her orders. "And listen closely for instructions. When in doubt, follow the hybrid."

Taking her cue, Pan boosted ahead, keeping a close handle on her senses.  _Where are you, you sneaky bastards,_  she inhaled, eyes tracing the ground beneath. "Over here!" Pan fired a handful of energy balls but stayed on her path. Soon, a couple of Cinna's soldiers wordlessly dropped down while the rest remained aflight.

_Where are the rest?_ She could feel Trunks' energy growing nearer, telling her they were rapidly encroaching on Nappa's domain, much to Pan's chagrin.  _I should have been able to keep them well away from the borderlands,_  she grumbled.

"More here." The quarterling sent out another series of shots.  _This is getting annoying,_ she silently moaned as a second pair of Saiyans dropped down.  _Just show your faces, you cowards. And stop dodging me._

Pan's unintentional prayers were answered, because she soon found herself staring into the cold, dead eyes of a foe who seemed to have no inclination to mask its presence.

Before she even had a chance to shout,  _It's here! The thing that took Cinna!_ Pan's mouth was clamped shut.

Frigid metal covered the lower half of her face as large hybrid eyes opened yet wider and her body careened backwards, slicing through the formation behind her.

Pan fought to orient herself, entirely overwhelmed by the speed she was currently travelling, and attempted to throw a disjointed kick, but the creature's arms were too long, keeping her at a distance that rendered physical attacks entirely useless.

Extending both palms, Pan released a hearty energy beam.  _Eat shit, sucker._

And that's exactly what it did.

Pan watched with rising horror as her blast disappeared into the chrome beast's chest and spread as a shimmery wave through the rest of its skeleton until it petered out at the limbs. She screamed into the rigid hand, frantically firing ball after ball to absolutely no avail.

"Identifying target."

The quarterling froze when soulless eyes scanned her over, heart pounding at her ribcage. The sensors in its eye sockets moved with speed and precision that only added to her earlier suspicions.  _There's no way this thing's organic,_ she panted.

"Target established."

Pan held her breath.

"Target disposable."

* * *

"Caya," Trunks spoke into his scouter, trying his damnedest to keep his nerves under control. The last thing he needed was clouded judgement but it was growing harder by the second. When she didn't reply, he squeezed his fist and cast his gaze eastward. He could sense her ki - she was okay - but Pan's energy was going wild.

_She's not one to panic,_ he acknowledged with rising concern.  _I need to get out there and see what's going on with her._

Tapping at his scouter once more, Trunks let out an exhale. "Nappa."

"Yes?"

He heard the General's voice, steady and stern.

"I can't just sit here." Trunks clenched his jaw. "I'm almost sure Pan's in trouble."

After a few seconds of painstaking silence, Nappa responded. "You told me yourself she's more than capable," he voiced, stringent. "Now is not the time for human sentimentalities."

_I know._ Trunks let out a groan, muscles twitching.  _Dammit!_ His body agonisingly pulled two directions. Pan was distressed - no question. He knew first hand that she was a demon to fight, and that only rendered her currently frenzied state all the more disturbing.

_Sorry, buddy._ Trunks blasted from his rock and bee-lined for the younger hybrid, sailing through the air at breakneck speed. She wasn't far, and he knew he could reach her in no time if he acted fast.

When he found her, she was thrashing furiously, face red and eyes strained. What looked like thick steel cords were wrapped around her middle and squashing her arms to her sides. Like a bullet, he charged straight for the strange warrior that had her in his clutches.

Angling his entire body for its head, the sound of mashing metal hit Trunks' ears as he decapitated the strange fighter.  _What the-?_  Stiff arms stayed firmly in place while an open hand continued to smother the quarterling.

A single cord appeared from the beast's torso and swung around with unsettling swiftness, extending right for Trunks' own face. The halfling twisted just in time as the dagger-like end cut through the air next to him. Trunks grabbed the outstretched line and yanked, ripping it from its source with a static crackle. After dropping it to the ground below, a ball formed in the hybrid's open palm.

" _Hmnks!_ '

Trunks spun around and saw Pan shaking her head, making deliberate actions with her legs.

"You want me to kick him?" he asked her.

" _Mm!_  she nodded.

He did as she said, swatting away another steely fibre as he rammed his foot into its back. Despite the growing damage, it wasn't showing any sign of slowing down.

Trunks heard a scream as the quarterling squeezed her lids shut in agony. The cords around her arms were tightening.  _Why is she letting him do this?_

"Fight back!" Trunks shouted, dropping his elbow into the creature's extended arm and ripping it out of the shoulder joint, finally freeing Pan's body from its firm hold.

With her own arms unleashed, Pan viciously grabbed the remaining metal limb while unyielding fingers remained at her cheeks. Trunks heard a crack when she popped the second arm out of its socket and threw it behind her, rage in her eyes.

The demi-Saiyan floated back as Pan finished the abomination off, laying into it with cold-hearted fury until every last silver chunk sank to the valley below.

"Why'd you struggle against that thing?" His voice sounded more chastising than he intended.

"Shut up," she bit back, throwing him a barbed look. "I didn't realise what I was up against at first. I know better now." After a few seconds, she murmured, "... Thanks."

Both turned their heads as each sensed yet more invaders travelling deeper to Nappa's holding.

" _Shit_ ," Trunks hissed, giving the quarterling one final look over to ensure she was okay before shooting off for his assigned post. "Nappa," he called, barking into his scouter. "They're coming for the borderlands."

He didn't get an answer.

"Did you hear me?" he cried.  _Goddammit!_ His scouter was dead.

"Trunks, wait!" Pan yelled as she chased after him, much to his surprise.

Reluctantly, he came to a stop despite the gnawing urge to get back to Nappa ASAP.  _I need to warn them. If Pan could get overwhelmed that easily, then the rest are sitting ducks._

"That… thing," Pan began once she reached him, clearly still jittery. "It completely absorbed my energy attacks." She was staring at him, agitated. "Don't waste yours if you come across another, alright? They come out of nowhere and don't have a signature," she continued, voice raw. After a few seconds, she added, "One of them took Cinna."

"Wait,  _what?_ " Trunks sputtered. He definitely hadn't been expecting that. "Took her  _where?_ "

"I don't know!" Pan asserted, throwing her arms out in frustration. "She's just gone!"

" _Jesus._ " He ran both hands through his hair, clenching at the roots while he tipped his head back in vexation.

"What do we do?" she asked, brown eyes large and pleading.

Trunks let out a breath. It had been a long time since he'd seen the endlessly self-assured hybrid so disarmed and he couldn't help but bring a palm to her shoulder in reassurance. "Are your scouters working?" was his first question.

"No." She shook her head. "It was weird. They all went offline, but not at the same time." Pan frowned as she turned away in thought. "It was like a cascade."

Trunks filed that away for later, ensuring to stay focused on the issue at hand. "Alright." He squeezed the hand still resting on her shoulder. "Get back to the others and tell them to join up with the Nappa's teams. We can guide you from here."

Pan nodded as she tucked her hair behind her ears.

"It looks like these outsiders are heading inward," Trunks continued steadily. "Be sure to warn the others about those mechanical guys. They're strong. And fast. But brittle if you get the joints.

"Okay," she nodded.

He could sense her energy stabilising and felt his own nerves soothe. "Signal if you're in trouble," he finished softly. "I'll come find you."

He waited until she took off before returning his focus to his original directive.

By the time he reached the General, the rest of the squads were already in the midst of battle.

"What happened to sounding the horn?" Nappa chided, a fierce expression accompanying his accusing tone as he glared at the lavender-haired halfling. "You may as well have stayed tucked into whoever's bed you woke up in this morning."

Trunks winced at the jab. "Had to make a judgement call," he responded quietly. "But it wasn't wasted. I learned a few things that could end up being crucial."

"Well?" Nappa swivelled towards him, tearing his eyes off the brawl below and eyeing the hybrid doubtfully.

"Cinna's been captured," was where he started.

"What?!" Nappa erupted, uncrossing his arms. "By these worms? Impossible. Cinna would never succumb to one of their traps."

"It wasn't a foot soldier that got her," Trunks informed. "There are others to watch out for that are much stronger. They're visible to the naked eye but they're invulnerable to energy attacks and power-ups. Tell your soldiers not to take them on alone. They'll get overwhelmed way too easily."

"Preposterous," Nappa barked, glancing away with his familiar stubbornly scowl. "All it takes is a little battle-hardness and you'd be able to take on anyone."

"Just give the order," Trunks insisted, piercing eyes unwavering as he stared at the General.

Nappa grumbled as he brought a meaty finger to his scouter. "Listen up, kids," he began his transmission while Trunks scanned the area for any further activity. "It seems-"

The halfling looked up when the rest of the sentence didn't come, breath hitching when he spotted metal fingers speared through Nappa's chest plate like fork prongs plunged into soft butter.

The General let out a strained wheezed and Trunks' heart all but stopped.

"Identifying target." A mechanical voice sounded as the demi-Saiyan leapt for the burly General. "Target established." Trunks peeled Nappa off the razor-sharp hand, kicking the machine away in the process.

"Target required."

It reached a silvery arm towards the General, using its extendable cords just as Trunks had seen before.

_Oh no you don't,_  the hybrid growled, catching the thick filaments before it wrapped itself around Nappa's limb. Thinking fast, Trunks realised the best way to get Nappa as far from this thing as possible was to do it him himself. Without any further hesitation, he did the unthinkable and planted a heavy kick into Nappa's chest, sending his de facto-leader soaring towards the forest below.

As he had with Pan's captor, Trunks brought a boot to the strange being's head before grabbing one arm and then the other, quickly dispatching each before he ended up crushed as Pan had been earlier.

_That'll have to do,_  he decided, jetting for the trees to reach the giant Saiyan before he ended up breaking his fall on tree branches.

With less than a handful of metres to spare, Trunks caught the veteran fighter and eased the rest of his descent. "You alright?" he asked, eyes immediately falling to four formidable puncture wounds dotting down the right side of his chest, already seeping crimson.  _Not good._

"I've had worse," Nappa rasped, flinching as he arched his back and brought his left hand up to assess at the damage. Instantly, they were painted red.

_Dammit._  Trunks felt a pang as he gently laid the older Saiyan down on the cool mulch. "I should have been paying better attention," he breathed, frown deepening as he attempted to cover the gaping holes with his hands. "I knew these guys didn't give off an energy signature."

_Please don't die._

" _Trunks,_ " Nappa barely managed to squeeze out, evidently in a lot more pain than he was letting on.

"What?" Trunks looked up, scanning the General's expression desperately.

" _Go._ "

Blue eyes widened.

Spinning on the ball of his foot, Trunks was immediately transfixed.

The beam of energy heading for them was wide as one of the ancient trees they were currently alongside. If he jumped right then, he'd have had enough time to dodge the blast and emerge unscathed, but he faltered when he realised that left a wounded Nappa to take the hit head-on and with no means of defending himself.

So Trunks stood firm, barely having the chance to emit his own quick barrier before explosive heat surrounded the duo completely.

* * *

"Keep moving," Turles commanded, forcing the heiress back to attention when she paused at the alarmingly powerful surge of energy behind her.

Bulla nodded and continued forward, deciding, for once, that Turles was right - she'd have greater impact from the front.  _If I catch them before they even get a chance to slip through, we won't need to worry about the guys out here,_  she acknowledged.

"Everything happens faster when you're on the frontline," Turles lectured, keeping his gaze ahead while the pair travelled towards the outer plateaus. "There's no time to deliberate, so stay fluid."

She was in the middle of clearing hair out of her eyes when she found a fist suddenly charging straight for her face. The heiress caught it with both hands, yanking sharply and throwing her leg out in rapid counter.

Turles grabbed the stiff limb in his palm, barely sparing his head a hefty kick. "Good," was all he muttered as the two found themselves locked in a tense stare-off.

Blood rushed to Bulla's face while he slowly loosened his grip on her shin, reeling herself back and suppressing a gulp.

"There's been no sign of Sibe so far," he voiced, eyes narrowing in scepticism. "And I still can't even be sure it was him that I saw…" He was almost inaudible as he turned away. "If you encounter him again-" Turles rolled his head, features straight and hard as he gazed at her with a seriousness that gave her goosebumps. "Run."

This time she did gulp.

"This isn't about tucking your non-existent tail and fleeing in fear," he continued with a caustic hiss. "He needs you to be within range to exert his will over your body."

She shuddered at the thought.

"What else?" Bulla prompted, recalling the uneasy pull from her core the first time she saw the strangely angelic overlord. "What else do I need to know about this guy? How do I beat him?"

He simply stared at her, almost astounded. "He can't be beaten alone," Turles eventually mumbled, causing her to falter. "There needs to be at least two." He paused, considering something. "Since we've already done it before, I highly doubt he'll fall for the same trick twice." She wanted to ask him to elaborate, but he was already onto the next topic.

"Now." Turles let out a breath as he cast his gaze east. "I'm going to rope in the rest of Nappa and Cinna's soldiers-"

At that very moment, Bulla perked up, sensing her beloved childhood friend, "Found some!" and blasted towards her. Pan wasn't alone, Bulla soon noted. A handful of Saiyans were nearby, including Captain Caya and a few others from her squad.

"Bulla!" Pan beamed, the ends of her eyes curling up as the two reunited. "You're okay!"

"Of course I'm okay," Bulla chuckled, warmth rising at the relief of seeing her fellow Earthling. "Why wouldn't I be?" That's when she noticed the older hybrid's dishevelled appearance. Her spandex covered arms were dotted with holes and dried blood was smeared all across Pan's cheek. "What happened to you?" Bulla asked, blue brows knitting together in concern.  _I thought these guys were meant to be easy?_

"Did you just get here?" Pan's features steadily straightened. "Have you faced anyone yet?"

"Not really," Bulla's frown deepened at the intensity behind the question, "We came to find you," and turned to look at Turles. He was following after her, joining up with the rest of the team. "Why? And what happened to Cinna?"

Both girls snapped their heads when each sensed the approach of another foreign horde. "Turles," Bulla called. Immediately, he cut his conversation with Caya short and floated over to the two hybrids. "There's a lot of them," she informed, intuitively keeping her voice hushed. "It feels like they're beelining for the forest."

"You." He pointed to the quarterling. "Lead Caya and the others to the head of their formation. Distract them with a frontal assault. My men and I will come from the rear, boxing them in, and picking off anyone who tries to escape."

Pan gave a firm nod before jetting off, Saiyan team in tow.

He turned to look at the heiress. "Take us around the back, but ensure they don't notice," he ordered. "Give us a wide berth."

"Got it," Bulla affirmed, masking her ki as she led him towards the invading wave. From the corner of her eye, she watched while Turles pressed at his scouter with no response.

With a grumble, he said, "Looks like it's just going to be you and me this time, princess."

_Whatever,_ she shrugged.  _I doubt we'll need the backup anyway._

After a few minutes, Bulla spoke up. "We're getting close. Should probably do the rest from the ground," she put forward, remembering an earlier point about being easy targets from the sky. The boulders would aid their cover while they skirted the invaders' movements.

Both spiralled smoothly towards the planet surface, hovering the rest of the route to avoid the sound of their footsteps giving away their location.

As she peered around yet another rocky outcrop, Bulla felt the telling prickle. Pulling back, she looked to Turles. " _They're about to pass through,"_ she whispered, gesturing with her thumb.

"How far are the others?" he asked, stretching past her to see for himself. "We only make our move once Caya starts her attack."

She squashed her back into the boulder, attempting to keep their respective armour pieces from brushing. "They're about eight hundred metres ahead," she answered, glancing away when she found herself unintentionally staring at his Adam's apple.

He transferred his gaze back to the heiress, eyeing her curiously. "Hot?"

"Huh?" Her heart jumped at the strange comment.

Three thick fingers tapped her cheek. "Your skin is flushed."

"Oh." Bulla fanned at her face sheepishly. Admittedly, there was a notable hike in temperature in the barren valley in comparison to her shaded post near the forest. Hopefully it was a convincing excuse.

Her cheeks burned even brighter when he brought a palm to her neck and stepped closer. " _Turles!_ " she scolded, eyes bulging at the broody warrior as she pressed her hands against his chest. "Now is not-"

He didn't even seem to be listening to her, head tilted while he mumbled, "What's this?" rolling something she couldn't see in his fingers.

Her own eyes distractedly fell on a sluggish mosquito hovering around the General's head. When it landed on his collar, she unthinkingly gave it a slap. "Ow!" she yelped, drawing her hand back and giving it a shake. "What the heck kind of insects do you have here?"

She sucked in a sharp breath when someone - some _thing -_ appeared behind him, imposing and unsettlingly polished. Instinctively, she jerked Turles out of the way, earning herself a bark of disapproval.

They jumped apart when a silver arm plunged towards them, five dagger-like fingers reflecting menacingly. Turles immediately fired a ki ball in retaliation and both Saiyans watched as yellow energy merged with the creature's skull, absorbing from the centre and dissipating outward. It didn't even flinch before sending out a metal cord, missing the General by a mile when he strafed in easy avoidance.

"You need recalibration," Turles taunted through gritted teeth. But the cord swung back, looping around his lumbar and cinching at his waist, catching an arm in the process. He let out a grunt when the coil tightened and wrapped his free fingers around the filament. Bulla could see Turles' hair starting to float as he sent raw power through the cord, but it only resulted in pretty shimmers rolling along the alloy towards the robot's core.

Another shiny rope shot out, knife's blade at its tip, and sliced through the air around him.

_God, it's fast!_  Bulla noted in surprise while Turles dodged with severely hampered mobility.

"Identifying target." It spoke with cold monotony as its mechanical eyes zoomed and darted. "Target established." Bulla was still disoriented as she watched the General struggle in its clutches. "Target req-"

She didn't wait to hear the rest of its message, bringing her hands either side of its face and ripping the head clean off, following up with a fist through its centre before tearing at the internal wiring and freeing Turles in the process.

Once loose, he took over, slamming into the lustrous creature and destroying it piece-by-piece.

"What was that!" Bulla exclaimed, heart pounding.

Turles flexed his hand, flicking metal shards to the ground. "How did it know we were here?" seemed to be his more pressing concern.

"Did you see how it just swallowed your energy beam?!" she continued, still edgy at the ease with which it had managed to sneak up on them.

Trickling red from the General's cheekbone caught her eye, and she stepped towards him, gliding her thumb along the length of the cut. "It actually got you," she muttered, eyes lifting when she noticed his hair had fallen victim too. Bulla fingered the ends, now even more disturbed at the creature's speed.  _This guy's no sloth._

He nudged her hand away. "Don't let yourself get distracted," Turles dismissed. "Scrapes are inevitable. Where are the invading soldiers?"

Bulla went quiet as she sought foreign ki, failing to find anything of note.  _Have I lost them already? They were about to reach us just a few minutes ago._

"They're… gone?" she uttered in confusion.

"What?" he snarled. "How can they be gone. You said they were on the verge of passing right by us."

"I know, I…" Her eyes tensed as she tried once more. "They've moved!" she blurted, aquamarine orbs widening. "Changed course." Bulla turned her head in the direction of the hidden army, bewildered as to how they could shift tactics so abruptly.

" **What?!** "

She leaned away from his booming voice with a wince. "It's like they skirted our skirting."

"Where are they now?" he demanded, jaw clenched.

Bulla pointed, squinting as the breeze picked up and sent loose sand hurtling towards her face.

"Anyone else out that way?" he pressed. "Your brother, or the other half-breed idiot?"

Bulla shook her head, ignoring the second half of his question. "No one."

He paused for a few seconds, presumably calculating his next move. "Which direction do I need to fly to find Caya?"

Bulla gestured the opposite direction.

"Alright," he began sternly. "Find my soldiers and send them towards your friend. The girl."

"Pan," Bulla offered.

"Whatever," he dismissed. "Tell them to find her. They're fighting blind without one of you four amongst them. Meet up with me once you've finished."

As he began his exit, Bulla called, "Turles."

He hesitated, twisting his head and listening over his shoulder while his cape swayed in the never-ending Crest wind.

"Take care of yourself." She faintly smiled when he lifted clouded eyes, meeting her own - sparkling and sanguine. "I think more than one of us would miss you."

The corner of his mouth pulled, revealing a single dimple before the General blasted off, leaving the heiress on her own once more.

After getting a handle on her thoughts and successfully shutting the basement door of her mind, Bulla sought Turles' Captains, following the trail once she'd pinpointed the first of them.

* * *

"Keep going straight," Bulla shouted into the wind as she wrangled the last of Turles' men, "I just want to check something," and began her descent. It was still eerily quiet out here, but a momentary flicker caught her attention.

She let out an exhale as her boots touched down on loose dirt, scanning the new site while she gained her bearings. It was dry as a bone and she kicked up dust with every step she took.

_Should be here somewhere._ Bulla continued to float along, dragging her fingertips over rocky outcrops along the way.

_What's this?_  Her attention fell on an unexpectedly dark spot amongst all the surrounding deep orange, breath catching when she got closer.  _Oh no…_

She broke into a sprint when she realised what was in front of her: One of Caya's soldiers, lips parted and eyes open. A thick rod drove through the centre of his chest while its pointy tip was crusted with drying blood.  _No no no._ Bulla ran her hands over his armour, instinctively seeking a way to relieve him of any discomfort. Lowering her ear to his mouth, she listened for - willed! - air to wheeze out. No such sound came and her chest clenched. "You can't be dead," she told him quietly, beginning to pump at his sternum.  _You guys are way too tough for this._

She felt another pulse of energy, faint but close, and rose to standing, hesitating before taking a step forward. Reluctant to leave the impaled soldier unattended.

"It's too late," a raspy voice croaked. "There's no saving him."

Bulla followed the sound to a nearby rock, finding yet another downed Saiyan behind it. " _Drago!"_ she cried, instantly dropping to her knees to assess the extent of his injuries.

She frowned as she spied shards of metal littered all through his forearms while he held a hand to his stomach. Bulla could never have imagined seeing of any of Caya's jaunty soldiers so subdued as he sat with his back against the ruddy boulder. "What happened here?" she asked, brushing specks of sand off his cheeks before thumbing sweat out of his eyes to help clear his vision.

"The network is down," he told her throatily, struggling for breath. "Couldn't call for backup." Bulla jolted when he grabbed her wrist, interrupting her fussing. "Warn the others," he urged earnestly. "Find the Kaiser and tell him to tread carefully."

Aquamarine brows drew together in doubt. "What do you mean? Warn the others about what?"

"They anticipated every move we made." Drago continued despite the clear agony it caused him to speak. "Got the one up on us even when we thought we found them first."

"How could they?" Her frown deepened.

"We've been betrayed."

Bulla blanched, throat clenching shut. She didn't even want to  _think_  about going down that train of thought. "No way." She shook her head, more adamant with each swing. "Never."

"What other explanation is there?" he coughed, beads of moisture dripping down the side of his face and curving around his hefty jaw.

"I don't know," the heiress admitted. "But not that."

"He won't see an assassination coming from the inside."

Her heart stopped beating altogether as she stared back at him, frozen.  _An attempt on his life by one of his own?_ Her stomach somersaulted.

"What are you doing?" he grunted as the heiress lifted his arm and hooked it around her neck.

"You're coming with me." She rose once more, one arm wrapped around his waist while the other hung on to the hand currently draped over her shoulder.

"Put me down," he chastised, beginning to pull away. "You can't fight while your hands are full."

"I can and I will," she countered, levitating off the ground and spurring a miniature whirlwind at their feet. "Don't argue with me. I guarantee I've got more practice at it than you do."

* * *

He was heading towards the far-lying plateaus when he spotted her, blue locks flying so wildly it made her look like Medusa. As she descended for the surface, he realised she was supporting someone he vaguely recognised, lowering him gently to the ground and laying him down in a shaded pass. Keeping her hand on his shoulder, Bulla pressed her fingers to his stomach and the two spoke inaudibly.  _Doesn't look like he's in good shape._

When she snapped her head right - the opposite direction to where Goten had found himself watching her from - the dark-haired hybrid did the same, though couldn't see what had grabbed her attention so abruptly. After confirming something with the wounded Saiyan and receiving an affirming nod, Bulla shot off.

The move was so hurried, Goten couldn't help but follow. Something was happening, and if it was serious, he wanted to be there too, making sure no one else got hurt.

He slowed when she came to a stop, chest tightening when he recognised the powerful energy she must have been seeking.

_Oh._

From this distance, all he could see was the unruly hair of his uncle while the towering Saiyan had his back to the halfling. Bulla was at Raditz' front, completely blocked from view.

Instinctively, Goten turned away. Half out of respect for their privacy and half out of preservation of his own heart.

Though he paused when he caught their rising voices.

It sounded as though they were speaking at the same time, each talking over the other while both grew increasingly frustrated.

All chatter came to an abrupt end when Goten heard a planet-shattering slap, followed by a shrill, " **Fine! Die then!** " Bulla proceeded to storm off, hair flicking out especially dramatically when she viciously added over her shoulder, "See if I care!"

Raditz watched her leave in exasperation, Bulla huffing as she muttered bitterly to herself. During his turn, he finally seemed to notice the dark-haired demi-Saiyan, eyeing him as Goten observed the fiery dispute. Uncle and nephew gradually found themselves caught in an uneasy silent exchange while Goten quietly attempted to gauge the older man's thoughts. Decoding Raditz' mind, Goten had learned, was like doing a Rubik's cube while blindfolded. From the moment he'd set foot on the flagship, he had no idea where he stood with the reticent Saiyan - at least Turles was clear with his disdain. Though, in hindsight, the chilly reception made complete sense.

And yet despite the Kaiser's closed-off demeanour and abrasive personality, Bulla still managed to catch his attention and needle her way under his skin.

_Of course she did,_ Goten acknowledged.  _It's like Trunks said._ He glanced to the youngest hybrid, taking in her cautious expression as she slowly registered his presence and lifted her head.  _She's the daughter of legendary Saiyan Prince Vegeta and Earth's most brilliant brain, Bulma Briefs. The deadliest of combinations._ Despite himself, a smile tugged at his mouth when their gazes met.  _No one stands a chance against her._ Bulla's lips began to part, as though to say something, but no sound came out.  _Not even me._

Bulla gasped suddenly, pulling him out of his musings. Aquamarine orbs expanded wide before she steadily lowered her gaze to her side. Slim hands clutched at her waist, obscuring Goten's view, but he could see liquid starting to pool under her fingers.

Without warning, she was violently yanked towards the ground, plummeting through the air like a hooked fish.

Goten looked on in horror, frozen for a moment before seeing his uncle spring into action and rocket after the diving princess. Snapping himself out of his shock, Goten followed, all three Saiyans soaring towards the dirt like missiles.

Bulla landed first with a crash, Raditz less than a second behind.

Goten touched down soon after. "What just happened?" He ran over, kneeling at her side and prying her protective fingers away from her waist. They were splotchy with crimson and his heart stalled when he saw an inch wide hole right below the base of her chest armour. She was on her back and squirming, breathing growing rapid as she restrained a groan.

Bulla screamed suddenly as her whole body spasmed into the sand. "Make it stop!" she begged, squeezing her eyes shut as she dug her fingertips into Goten's forearm.

"Make what stop?" he pleaded, eyebrows pinching with worry when she frantically clawed at her side.

"There's something in there!" she cried, nails tearing at her open wound in search of whatever she believed to be inside. "Get it out!"

Goten gripped her wrists, interrupting her self-directed assault before she dealt any further damage. "Okay, okay," he placated. "I'll get it out, just-" Foolishly, he looked to her face, immediately tormented by the agony in her expression, "Stop ripping yourself up," and inhaled before plunging his index finger into the gaping wound. The squelch of fluid and flesh turned his stomach. To his surprise, Bulla was right - there was definitely something obstructing the hole, though it appeared clear to the naked eye.

"It's one of those invisible guys!" he alerted hurriedly.  _I didn't even sense him._ "They've put something in her."

"Show yourself!" the Kaiser demanded, teeth bared and eyes inflamed while he scanned the area, entirely predatory. "Or face the consequence of me finding you first." When he darted to grab thin air, Goten heard a grunt as Raditz slammed an unseen foe into the boulder left of Bulla's head. "Running like a coward?" he taunted.

"Raditz," Bulla cried out once more, compulsively reaching for her side and pawing at Goten's blocking hands in frustration. "Get him to stop whatever he's doing, or I swear I'm going to explode."

"I can make him stop." The Kaiser maintained his attention on the hidden soldier as he kept him pinned to the rock. "But I'm restricted in what I'm allowed to do with my hands." He tightened his grip, finally causing the soldier to flicker into sight. "In case you've forgotten."

When she faltered, Goten looked between them sceptically.  _What is he talking about?_

"Unbind me," Raditz requested, narrowing the gap between himself and his captive until their chest plates grazed. "And I will be only too happy to end your suffering."

* * *

_He actually..._

Bulla hesitated.

Someone's life hung on the balance by her word alone.

_I…_

She screamed once more when the stomach-curdling combination of itching, burning and excruciating agony spiralled out of her side.  _I don't-_ Her eyes stung as she tossed her head back, growing dizzy from the bursts of mind-numbing pain.

"Bulla," she heard Raditz' voice, stern but pleading as she drifted in and out of focus.

"Fine!" she yelled. Before she could even finish her thought, Bulla heard a terror-filled squeak followed by the crush of solid bone. When she twisted her head along her rock, there was blood spattered all across Raditz' face while he glared at the, now disfigured, soldier.

_It still hurts..._

She rolled onto her stomach and drew her legs in, tears threatening the corners of her eyes as she balled herself into fetal position.

Vaguely, she registered hands on her shoulders, persuading her onto her back before slipping out of consciousness.

* * *

She hadn't even realised she'd blacked out, but when she opened her eyes, two Sons were towering over her. There was a stark sensation of deja vu. "Is this another dream?" she asked groggily.

"I need to get this thing out of you," Raditz voice hit her ears while rough hands traced over her waist.  _Funny, that isn't what he usually says in dreamworld? Maybe it's different this time. Let's see what Goten does._

"Bulla." As if on cue, Goten spoke too, bringing his face in line with her own, "Are you okay? You seem kind of..." and pressing his palm to her forehead. "She's burning up," he told the older Saiyan.

_Not following the script either._ She closed her eyes once more and noted the sound of ripping fabric, followed by cool air dancing over her stomach, and jerked her leg when something dug into the wound. "Ow!"

Raditz paid no mind, despite the kick to the gut the move earned him.

She started zoning out again, still hearing their voices, though not particularly following what was being said.

"I've seen this before," Raditz murmured as he rolled a barbed cylinder in his palm. "She's going have to ride out the pain until her body processes the last of the venom."

"But she'll be okay?" Goten asked, prying her eyes open and inspecting her pupils.

"Only pain receptors are stimulated," he answered clearly. "It's not intended to cause any long-term damage. But the bleeding-"

Warm fingers glided over her side.

_That feels nice,_ she wriggled.

"I'm going to have to cauterise," Raditz' finished, grazing over the gaping hole with his thumb.

"Are you serious?" Goten baulked, glancing to Bulla with visible concern before looking back at his uncle.

"Hold her down."

"But-"

"Do it."

She felt a hand at each of her shoulders as Goten shuffled closer, still in his kneel next to her.

_Hi Goten,_ she smiled.

He dropped his head, bringing his mouth to her ear. " _I'm sorry,_ " he whispered.

_For what?_ she wondered innocently, happily distracted by the sensation of two sets of male hands wandering across her body.  _I could get used to this._

The bliss was short-lived, however.

The Saiyan princess' cries reached all the way to the stratosphere before echoing back to the parched valley and rebounding off the stoic outcrops.

Raditz stopped after a few seconds. "Give her something to bite," he ordered impatiently.

Goten glossed around for anything suitable. "There's nothing to give," he responded. "Not even a tree branch. It's all sand out here."

Still reeling from the unending series of faint-inducing pain spirals, Bulla felt a large, abraded hand at her mouth. "Here," Raditz offered. She didn't even get a chance to deliberate before he returned to work at her stomach, fingers singing raw, tender skin.

She clamped down, certain she was about to rip the outer chunk of his left hand clean off, but it helped.

Less than a minute later, the ordeal was over and her mind slowly sank back into her skull.

Goten lifted, removing his weight while Raditz withdrew both hands, each observing her cautiously.

"Bulla?" the older demi-Saiyan spoke warmly while he rubbed her arm. "You still with us?"

She pressed into her palm, taking in her surrounds as she carefully pushed herself up. "That's… actually a lot better," she uttered, still moderately light-headed, and looked to the older of the two remorsefully, thoughts beginning to clear.

_Thank you._

Goten extended a hand and she took it gratefully, gently pulling herself up to standing. Perhaps it was due to shock, but the waves of nausea-inducing pain were definitely starting to subside, and the cauterised nerves seemed to allow some relief from the wound itself.

The dark-haired halfling was still clutching her arm, observing her with marked apprehension before pulling her close and wrapping both arms around her back.

She lowered her lids with an exhale, relishing the brief moment of comfort as he dipped his nose to the top of her head and gave a squeeze.

Bulla broke into a smile against his collarbone when she realised he was showing no sign of letting go. "Who's more shaken up right now?" she teased. "Me, or you?" Out of the corner of her eye, she looked to the pure-blooded member of the group and watched while he wiped his hands on his cape. When he lifted his gaze, meeting her own, his expression was controlled as ever.

_What are you thinking, silent soldier._

She twisted around when she sensed Trunks' ki, abruptly reminded that she was, in fact, in the middle of an all-out war.

He was in the distance, hovering over a row of hills, but just near enough for her to see. Time slowed as she zeroed in.

The wind set his hair flying while he threw out an arm, gesturing at something ahead. His mouth moved with fervour as scores of Saiyans dashed forward, seemingly at his instruction alone. When he turned to show his back, she realised his hair wasn't the only thing blowing in the strong breeze: A navy cape flapped fiercely behind him.

_Look at him,_ Bulla gawked in unbridled awe.  _My brother._

_Born to rule._

Seeing him in the thick of all the action was just the prompt she needed to bring her focus back to centre.  _Enough messing around._

Bulla pulled away from her fellow hybrid, ignoring the sting in her side when she readied herself for launch but Goten grabbed her hand, intercepting her exit. "Are you sure you're okay to get back out there?" he asked, brows converging.

"Please," she scoffed, playful smirk adorned. "Who are you talking to here?"

The end of his mouth curled into a knowing smile and the creases at his eyes deepened. "In that case..." Goten glanced to the Kaiser and offered a nod. After Raditz returned the gesture, the demi-Saiyan blasted off, aiming straight for Trunks' skirmish.

As she watched Goten's flame shrink, Bulla felt Raditz approach.

"I know, I know," she sighed, preempting the reaming that was coming her way. "I let my guard down. My father would be ripping me to shreds right now if he was watching, trust me." The heiress was interrupted when she felt a pair of hard lips pressing into her own and inhaled sharply, instinctively bringing her hands up to push against his armour before letting her eyes close and breath release.

The swirl in her stomach matched the shakiness of her knees and when they pulled apart, Bulla absently brought her fingers to her mouth, suddenly unable to find the words she'd had just moments before.

Raditz raised his right arm, flexing his fingers before her. "I swore to myself I would never have your blood on my hands," he uttered, observing the appendage as crusted crimson cracked within the grooves of his finger joints.

Bulla simply stared at him, mouth agape, now rendered entirely speechless as her heart burst in her chest.

" _Your hands can be used for more than killing, Raditz_ ," she finally managed to get out.

He glanced back at her, guarded. But in that moment, he looked more like a Son than she ever remembered seeing and it sent shivers spiralling down her spine.

A hint of a smile appeared as he shook his head, but it was gone before she had a chance to commit it to memory as he blasted off, following his nephew towards the Trunks-led assault.

Taking a few breaths to collect herself, Bulla flew the opposite direction, grimacing at the verbal reprimand she knew she had coming after her detour from Turles' very clear instructions.

Collecting Drago along the way, she darted for the borderlands.

Once they arrived, she lowered her passenger to a nearby rock and sought her leader.

Turles was in the middle of inspecting an anonymous invader's armour, pulling at his chest piece and slipping his hand inside, apparently seeking something. He paused when the heiress approached, listening over his shoulder.

Bulla showed her palm immediately. "Don't even start."

Turles straightened, glaring at her blankly before his eyes fell to her bared stomach, honing in on the unsightly opening. "You've been hit," he commented, taking a step closer.

_Understatement._

"I'm fine now." She ran her fingers through her hair, ready to get back on track as quickly as possible. "What's been going on?"

With arms crossed, he twisted around, casting his gaze behind him. "Your friend has proven to be an effective fighter," he told her, evidently pleased. "It doesn't hurt that she actually listens to me."

Bulla snorted at the addon. "Is she your favourite now?" she quirked an eyebrow, stifling a laugh. "That didn't take long."

He strolled towards her, still eyeing the hole at her side. "What happened?"

"Nothing," she dismissed as he lowered to his haunches, inspecting the wound more closely. "Scrapes are inevitable, right?"

"Who sealed this?" he persisted, reaching out a hand.

"Raditz," she answered, causing him to hesitate. When he glanced up, bottomless black orbs met blue for a few silent moments until he rose to his full height, drawing his hand back and returning it to his side.

"They've been pressured back to the plateaus." Turles shifted gears, showing his back as he returned to his earlier task.

"Cool..." Bulla nodded, clasping her hands together while she watched him direct a palm towards the corpse. "That's good news."

"We've slowly been corralling them," he added with a blast. "And have almost merged with the rest of the military."

"So we're all out here then?" she clarified, letting go of a breath she hadn't even realised she'd been holding.

"This area's been cleared," Turles stated. "Time to move on."

* * *

All things being equal, today could have progressed far worse. The loss of their scouters as a means of communication was a major blow, but the hybrids had prevented the day from becoming a complete slaughter. While reluctant to involve them initially, he had to admit they felt like a godsend right now.

Unthinkingly, he peered at his right hand, still covered in her blood.  _Not now,_ he silently rumbled, heeding his father's words.

He neared the prince's son.  _Trunks,_ he reminded himself.

"Report," he ordered once he reached the oldest hybrid. An earlier envoy had already relayed some of the most essential points. Cinna was missing. Nappa had fallen. Bulla's brother had risen as the dark horse, taking the bulk of both Nappa and Cinna's squads under his wing while the rest found direction through Turles' command.

Trunks swivelled, arms folded as he tore his eyes off the brawl and regarded the Saiyan leader. "We've broken the back of it," he answered calmly. "This is the biggest wave we've faced so far, and the tricks never end." The demi-Saiyan effortlessly swerved when a beam sailed towards him. "But they're running out of steam. The upper hand is ours. We never lost it."

Raditz nodded slowly, admittedly impressed at the halfling's seamless transition from Earthling businessman to Saiyan military commander. Siblings they may be, Raditz acknowledged, but the Prince's progeny were very different people. Though, evidently, the potential was there.

"Horus!" Trunks called suddenly, catching the attention of a long-haired Saiyan fifty metres away. The hybrid extended a stiff arm, palm to the ground, and lifted the limb until it was vertical and in-line with his body. Immediately, Horus sank towards the planet surface and brought both hands above his head, unleashing a broad wave of energy and engulfing three once-hidden invaders in the process.

Trunks returned his attention to the Kaiser. "Whoever planned this," he continued soberly. "Never counted on you being able to detect their soldiers. I'm willing to bet that element was crucial to their plans of triumph."

"Almost certainly," Raditz agreed.  _Our casualties would have been far higher by now._

"We've got this," the half-breed displayed a confident smile.

While undoubtedly softer-tempered than his old prince, Raditz saw the familiar intensity behind the man's eyes all too easily and had to suppress the cracking of old wounds at the unwelcome reminder.

Trunks turned his head and gazed into the distance. "The others are on their way," he informed. "Bulla. Pan. The rest of your soldiers." Raditz shifted too, unthinkingly. The half-breed looked at him then, eyes faintly narrowing, but didn't say anything further.

"You and I are in charge of the airspace beyond that rock-line," Raditz commanded, gesturing to the string of hulking boulders to the left. "Turles and Bardock will take the opposite side."

"Got it," Trunks confirmed. As Raditz began his exit, the halfling called out once more, "Hey Kaiser," causing him to pause. "They're safe in my hands," he assured seriously. "My father taught me more than just how to throw a punch."

Raditz eyed him for a moment.  _For all the Prince's flaws,_ he considered.  _The bastard knew how to stay alive. And by extension, keep his underlings breathing too._

Until they outlived their value, of course.

He offered a quiet nod and blasted towards the incoming squads.

Ideally, he'd have kept his distance from her for as long as the battle persisted, entrusting Turles with the role of keeping an eye on the stubborn princess, but some things couldn't be helped.

After hearing the blood-curdling screams that had erupted from her earlier, he wouldn't have been surprised if she was out of commission for the rest of carnage, but here she was, poised and ready as though nothing had even happened.

He observed as she dipped down into her crouch, spinning right and landing a meaty punch in the chest of a cloaked soldier behind her. He flickered for a moment before disappearing again and smashing into the rock-face to her rear.

Immediately, Bulla swept out her left foot and dropped into the dirt, straddling her next foe before drawing back a fist and letting it fly right into his face. Hopping onto the balls of her feet, she dashed forward, launching at a third adversary and ramming into him with her shoulder. A stream of yellow shot out of her hand as she propelled herself up and released three distinct beams of controlled energy in succession.

Three bodies fell to the ground, one after the other.

_Six in under twenty seconds._

Never could Raditz have imagined being so mesmerised by the sight of combat. The juxtaposition of someone so ethereal being equally indomitable on the battlefield continued to bend his mind.

Once he reached his General, the pair swapped notes and solidified their next step.

"There's still no sign of their ship," Turles voiced throatily, eyes on the skirmish to their right. "We can't be sure of anything until we annihilate the source."

"Agreed." Raditz watched too as the two female hybrids fought back-to-back, Saiyan fierceness pouring all through their fiery expressions. They almost appeared to be dancing, their moves were so seamlessly synchronised. It occurred to the Kaiser then that these two girls, pretty and privileged as they were, had to have spent endless hours training together. "But none of the Earthlings seem able to pinpoint where that source is."

Far off, he spotted the remaining two hybrids. Like the girls, Trunks and Goten were undoubtedly well-practised at fighting side-by-side.  _Perhaps splitting them up wasn't the best move this time around,_  he acknowledged as the duo landed a simultaneous punch on one of those strange sleek steel contraptions, shattering it to pieces.

Another was terrorising a Saiyan squad nearby and Goten reacted quickly, hooking both mechanical arms behind its back while Trunks systematically destroyed each major joint.

Coordinated spars were not something Saiyans spent too much time focusing on. One-on-one,  _or many-on-one_ , was the preferred avenue of practice, but the synergy he was witnessing was definitely making him question whether their approach could do with an overhaul.

Trunks was on the right track. The current wave was slowly dwindling with no sign of reinforcements on the way. However this attempted invasion intended on ending, their hopes were all but dead in the water.

The ground began to rumble suddenly, then rattle.  _Earthquake?_ Raditz wondered doubtfully.  _Wouldn't be the strangest thing to happen today._  The shaking only grew stronger, until he heard shouting from Trunks' camp.

Everyone paused where they stood, despite any ongoing tussles, hypnotised by the impossible sight before them.

Emerging from thin air was…  _A boot?_  Raditz floated closer, straining his eyes as he attempted to follow what in the name of the Gods was going on in the clearing ahead. He was wrong - it was two boots.

Gradually, from the ground up, metallic feet materialised. Followed by legs, a pelvis, an abdomen. Raditz cast his gaze across the battlefield - all of his soldiers were stuck in a daze, leaving themselves wide open.

" **Fall back!"**  he roared, snapping them to attention and repeating the order until all were behind him.

The construction of the behemoth was complete and it was unlike anything he'd ever seen. Taller than any mountain on Crest and shiny alloy hands large enough fit five fully-grown Saiyans with ease.

Its chest was immense, a solid impenetrable wall with presumably no vital organs within to mark.

_Where do we even start with this thing?_

An ear-wrenching creak sounded from its neck when the colossus turned its head, red eyes glowing as it honed right in on the Kaiser. Raditz hesitated, wrestling with the choice of standing his ground, or blasting forward and sparing the strange foe an easy target.

He didn't need to deliberate long. In a cascade, an endless series of seven-foot panels hissed open across its body. All down its arms, legs and torso.

_What in the heavens?_

Within each compartment sat a dormant steel robot, identical to those that had been wreaking havoc across Crest since the first's arrival. Except now it wasn't one or two at a time. There had to be close to a hundred of them, if not more.

Raditz drew in a breath, pitch black eyes widening.

In sequence, they whirred to life, razor-sharp fingers fidgeting, long faces tilting with eerie curiosity. The beasts floated out in unison, waiting a handful of heavy seconds before swarming out like giant reflective bees.

Three came straight for him, immediately launching into a frenzied assault of steel fists and rapid, slicing cables. Raditz slipped directly into his ascended form, realising the speed boost would be crucial.

He ducked swiftly when a cord swung for his head, grabbing it and strafing right as the second robot directed its fist towards his gut. Shooting backwards, he forced distance between himself and his agile opponents.

Those who could, transformed too. In the corner of his eye, Raditz watched candle flames light up one-by-one. On his right, his nephew joined the sequence, followed by the half-breed prince.  _What?!_  Raditz temper spiked.  _The nitwit lied to me!_ Instinctively, he looked to the girls. The quarterling ascended too, blasting forward without an inkling of hesitation.

Bulla stood near Turles, but her head, still blue, was turned. And when she powered up, she remained as he'd always known her.  _Perhaps he was telling the truth about her?_

" **Bulla!** " Raditz heard Turles bellow. The General was furious as he reached for her arm, face flaming while the vein at his temple throbbed. She dodged him, barely, and dashed for the forest. " **Get back here!** " he ordered.

_What is she doing?_ Raditz frowned, but was soon brought back to the skirmish at hand when he heard the cries of his men and women, falling like flies to the lustrous machines.

It took all he could to repress the disappointment at seeing the Saiyan princess fleeing the scene of such a heated and critical battle.

_Was I wrong about her?_

* * *

Raditz crashed through another rigid midsection, hearing the crunch of alloy ripping from its fastenings as he brought himself to a stop. Hunks of burnished shell sank to the ground while he stared at the scrap metal graveyard below.

Saiyan stamina was not limitless, and he knew his soldiers would be growing tired by now. It certainly didn't help that their adversaries had no such weakness.

To his left, he caught Turles snapping his head suddenly, distracted by something behind him. The inattention earned him a hefty blow to the cheek and he let out a groan in response.

"What was that," Raditz barked, swerving right to dodge his own hit.

"Nothing," Turles grumbled, smashing his fist through a gleaming head.

Opting to keep his mouth, Raditz changed his mind when he continued to see the General making one sloppy move after the other. "Has one day with your underlings rubbed off on you this much?" he cut, grabbing the arm of an incoming droid before it rammed its fingers right through Turles' chest piece. "You're fighting like a maggot. Where is your head? Because it certainly isn't here."

After a few moments of silence, the surly General spoke. "She's in trouble."

" _Who's_  in trouble?" Raditz chastised, growing increasingly impatient. The last thing he needed was an inattentive General at his side, failing what was left of their struggling army.

Turles simply glared at him, fiery-eyed.

Raditz own eyes tensed as he glowered back at his General, "How do you know she's in trouble." His chest constricted when the man glanced away with an inaudible mumble. "Speak, Turles," he growled, bearing his canines.

"Just trust me."

He couldn't help himself. "Where is she?" the Kaiser pressed, finishing off his foe.

"In the city," Turles answered huskily.

Raditz bit down so hard it sent a ring to his ears.

"I know what you're thinking," the General added firmly, tensing his fist. "But she wouldn't have deserted. The girl is soft, but you and I both know... she's tough."

He'd be lying if he said it didn't relieve him to hear such words from his trusted right hand. He was reluctant to believe what his rational mind had been whispering about the princess since she'd first disappeared.

"I can take over," Turles insisted. "We're managing for now."

Raditz hesitated, unable to shirk responsibility so readily. His people needed him at the helm, leading them fearlessly into victory. This was exactly the sort of thing Bardock warned against.

"She's fading," the shorter Saiyan urged, dropping his voice.

They exchanged a glance before Raditz raced for the city centre, a sinking hole in his stomach pulling as he wondered what he would be forced to witness once he found her.

As he sailed over the dense forest, scanning desperately, his eyes fell on a strange light in the distance, warm and wide.  _What's that?_ He was already flying at full speed, but it had never felt slower.

Once he reached the settlement, he came to an abrupt stop as his already sinking stomach twisted. The bright light was her, golden and blinding as she cast an immense protective dome over the broken Saiyan battle school. One arm was out, sustaining the barrier while the other clutched at her side.

_What is she doing?!_

Behind her were the huddled future fighters of Crest, along with weaker and ageing members of their society

_Mother!_  He spotted Gine, squeezing Cinna's feisty cub tightly while a mutilated invader lay at their feet. He wasn't the only one, Raditz quickly realised. The soiled school floor was littered with foreign soldiers, scattered like strewn dolls. The kid from the cafeteria was there too - the one Bulla seemed so fond of cavorting with despite her humble standing on the ship. The teenager was cradling some of the children, vacant face covered in blood as she soothingly whispered into one of the toddlers ears.

Raditz watched in horror as blood seeped through Bulla's fingers, agony in her features as she dropped to one knee. Static electricity crackled through her, as well as her persisting blockade.

One of the cadets broke from the cluster, running to her side and putting out his hands in efforts to add his own energy to the barrier. Another came forward, doing the same as she fell to her other knee.

"Bulla!" Raditz called from outside the dome. The break in concentration caused her to lose her hold on her shield, allowing him to see what she'd been protecting against. Energy surged outward, smacking into hordes of previously unseen soldiers and sending the front layer flying backwards. Hundreds were illuminated by her ki.

Raditz took the opportunity to dash in, heading straight for the slumping hybrid as she winced into the floorboards.

"Take them out first," she panted, sweat dripping off the tip of her nose and onto the back of her hands.

He looked up, balling ki in both palms before blasting a torrent of energy outward and vaporising anyone slow enough to slip into its wake.

Once enough of them had dropped, or fled, he relented, letting the heat in his hands dissipate.

"What happened here?" he pressed she Bulla pushed herself up to her feet.

"I felt Fern," she exhaled, still holding her fingers to her wound. "They were trying to take the kids." Bulla stumbled backwards, catching her balance when Raditz brought out a hand and nudged it against her spine. "I think it was all a diversion. The Titan and its minions."

Raditz looked at her doubtfully.

"Well deduced little Saiyan."

His blood ran cold at the sound of the voice before a monstrous rage rose up, sending it pumping through his veins once more in a wild torrent.

"It seems some of you are a touch sharper."

Bulla lifted her gaze slowly, lips parted while she stared at his old overlord.

"Raditz, my dear." He smiled sweetly, but his eyes were frigid and hateful as ever. "Always a pleasure seeing you. Oh my, you do look impressive, don't you?" He scrunched his nose as if cooing over a fluffy puppy, "I never got a chance to see you in this dashing state myself," but the smile slipped into a sneer. "On account of you killing me while my back was turned, like the coward I've always known you to be."

Before he knew it, there was a fist through Sibes rib cage, just like he'd last seen him all those years before. His chest dared swell, relief that the ordeal could be over so quickly.

"I don't care about your monologue," Bulla hissed, face-to-face while she stared into icy grey orbs with cold-hearted disdain only a royal could produce.

"So fast," Sibe gasped, gripping her penetrating forearm. "I must watch out for you. It took them years to reach this level, even with all my toys."

"Well none of them are the daughter of Prince Vegeta, are they?" she smirked sinisterly.

_Bulla, no!_

Now Sibe was the one to smirk, lowering his lids as he loosened his grasp. Bulla's confidence slowly began to fade as she floated backwards in building disbelief. There was no blood on her hand. Not even a beating organ between her fingers.

Both fighters watched, mortified as the gaping hole at Sibe's breast closed itself, not unlike the process Raditz had just observed with the creation of The Colossus.

"You have no heart!" she yelled.

Sibe's shoulders shook as he let out a snicker. "Some might argue I've never had one." He gave a knowing look to Raditz. "But that's just hurtful. Speaking of which."

Raditz slapped his hand to his chest, wheezing as he dropped a palm to the floor.

"What are you doing to him?!" Bulla cried, golden eyebrows converging in worry. "Stop!"

_Don't,_ Raditz urged, though unable to use his voice.  _Don't let him learn anything more._

Bulla pounded her fists on Sibe's sleek armour, even throwing a kick in for good measure. He remained unmoved but quirked an eyebrow at her performance.

Raditz let out an exhale when the torment stopped, quickly getting back to his feet while his heart pounded against his ribs. When Bulla threw both hands to her throat, eyes bulging, he knew the real torture was far from over.

_No..._ He was forced to watch as Bulla fought for oxygen, skin beginning to flush.  _If I could just catch him off guard like last time…_

He launched for the diminutive tyrant, landing a punch right through his skull.  _You may have foregone your heart somehow, but everyone needs a brain to operate._ Two-thirds of Sibe's face was missing, leaving nothing more than a chin, half a jaw and a single ear.

The Kaiser let out an exhale.  _There._

But as before, there was no blood. Or tissue. And Sibe's face reconstructed right back to its prior form, to Raditz' absolute horror.

Once repaired, Sibe let out a hearty laugh, bringing both dainty hands to his mouth. "Oh my goodness. Just as dense as I remember," he cackled. "Yes, we'll definitely need to throw some smarter genes in there to even things out."

Bulla fell out of her transformation as her face turned blue.

"I have a theory," Sibe began, eyes still closed as he brought his short arms behind his back. "Now, bear with me here because it's rather outlandish." Opening a single eye, he glanced at the Kaiser.

Bulla drifted to Sibe's side, the whites of her eyes now a disturbing red, still clutching her throat. When he finally released his mental grip on her neck, she sucked in an urgent breath.

"I didn't recognise you at first." He shifted his left hand and rested it on her back. "But we've met before." Sibe turned his head while he took her appearance in carefully. "Haven't we sweetheart."

She didn't answer, keeping her lips stiffly pressed.

"What a curious thing you are," he commented, tilting his head in interest as he stroked his chin. "I've always had a preference for the refined. Can you tell?"

Raditz could see her shaking as she fought through the effects of his telekinesis.

"As for my theory." His unsettling smile returned.

Raditz gasped as he fell back to the ground, eyeballs on the verge of bursting while his body quivered uncontrollably.

"Stop hurting him, please!" he heard Bulla beg. He managed to lift his head just enough to see her face. Blue eyes were glassy as her lids welled.

_Tears. For me?_

"Hmm," Sibe audibly considered. "Raditz, my puppet. I know she's a picture, but look at me, will you?"

Raditz' neck went so stiff, it could have snapped as he attempted to resist the compulsion. Begrudgingly, he met the gaze of his once-overlord, seething with fury.

"That was a dirty trick you and Turles played on me. It really hurt my feelings." Sibe pouted dramatically, "I've always known exactly what I was going to do once we were finally reunited," but his soulless eyes were beginning to sparkle. "Today is the day. So I leave you with a message."

Raditz looked to Bulla with visceral worry as she stifled a cry, tensing her jaw while she squeezed her lids shut.  _What is he doing to her?_

"Crush my heart." Sibe dropped all pretence as he glared viciously at the tethered Kaiser. "And I'll crush yours."

The second he felt his binds release, he leapt for the princess, swiping at her middle, but all he reached was an after-image.

The last thing he heard was a feminine scream before the two disappeared into nothingness.

**"BULLA!"**


	27. The Law of Unintended Consequences

" _What are we going to do?" a scaly soldier tremored, eyes taking in the unfathomable sight before him. His overlord was shred to pieces, bits of his pristine body strewn all across the lush landscape._ Those filthy Saiyans. " _We'll never survive without his protection." Terrifying as Sibe was, life as a leaderless ex-soldier of his was even more daunting. The galaxy was an unforgiving place and Sibe had enough cunning and clout to keep his own well sheltered. "Can we wish him back?" he put forward desperately. "How do we threaten those exiled Namekians without the Saviour or the Saiyans?! Everyone's going to defect once word gets out."_

" _We won't need to wish him back, you moron," his partner grumbled impatiently. "You can't die when you're already immortal."_

" _Look at him, Tysis!" the first countered frantically, arms directed to the grass. "His body is destroyed!"_

_Tysis eyed the ground too, dropping to his haunches and dragging a gloved finger over stained soil. "Help me collect the pieces of his heart," he ordered. "The more the better."_

" _I can't even tell what's heart and what's not," his comrade frowned. "It's all mush."_

" _Grab everything then!" Tysis barked, causing the other to jump. "Stop your whining and get to work. We'll take what's here and recover what we can from the regen stations."_

 _The soldier did as directed, collecting squishy, dehydrating bits of Saviour in his arms. How had this happened? How had none of them seen the revolt coming?_ And for the Saiyans to actually succeed,  _he shuddered._ Unimaginable _._

_It was a fluke, they all agreed. It had to have been. The Saiyans were moronic. Strong, but dense. If they could all get their Saviour back, nothing of this order would ever happen again._

" _Damn those Saiyans," Tysis cursed under his breath. "They sabotaged everything. Who knows how long it will take to have anything resembling our old base back together."_

_For a bunch of empty-headed monkeys, they sure knew how to give themselves a head start._

" _This will have to do," Tysis exhaled, his own bundle dripping from his arms. "We'll need to keep him on ice until we can get one of the regen tanks working."_

" _How long will it take to get him back to how he was before?"_

" _I don't know, Alph," Tysis muttered, marching forward. "His body wasn't made for combat and he knew that. Cell repair will be slow. Especially when we're building him back from single cells." His throat rumbled in annoyance. "Hopefully something amongst this pile of pulp is still alive, salvageable."_

_Alph ran to catch up, tapping a button to return his helmet. The air was still filled with smoke, dust and death._

" _As long as we can regrow his heart," Tysis spoke. "We can rebuild what once was."_

* * *

Goten ducked as a steel fist flew towards his face, trying - and barely succeeding - to keep focused. Bulla was far from here, but thankfully her energy was stable.  _She's a big girl, Goten,_ the demi-Saiyan begrudgingly reminded himself.  _You can't go saving her all the time..._   _As much you want to._

Despite his own instructions, he couldn't stop himself from keeping a mental eye on her ki during his own bout. He had no idea why she left, and, judging by Turles' furious reaction, it wasn't a move that had been pre-approved. But part of him remained relieved - the bulk of the heat seemed to be right here, and therefore far from wherever the heiress was at this very moment.

He breezed backwards, arms crossed as he blocked a heavy hit. Casting his gaze right, he took in his oldest friend, issuing orders while tirelessly deflecting blast after blast from his less able troops. There was a fire in Trunks' eyes and Goten couldn't be sure he'd ever seen the halfling so alive.

He smiled to himself, twisting rapidly as a hasty cord flashed past him like a bolt of lightning.

Suddenly, Goten's stomach lurched. The drop in her energy was so stark it almost gave him whiplash. Instinctively, he snapped his head left.

In his line of sight, Goten found Pan staring the same direction, lips parted as she tore her attention away from the brawl in front of her. To his surprise, the Saiyan General Turles had turned too.

Pan swivelled back around, palpable worry overtaking her almost permanently brazen features as she glared at her uncle.

Without a second thought, Goten launched, "Gah!" but was whipped back when a cable wrapped around his arm. Reaching for the offending steel fibre, Goten's free wrist found itself snatched instead.  _No!_  He wrestled fruitlessly, kicking towards his lustrous foe but failing to land a boot.

When he sensed Raditz leaving the battlefield, his anxiety only rose further. "Let go of me!" he yelled, forced to watch as energy that was meant to be syphoned into his power-up skated along the cords.

When a third cable wrapped around his ankle, Goten nearly exploded.  _God dammit!_ He pulled both arms as fiercely as he could, only growing more desperate as each second passed.

 _Bulla,_ he silently called out when he felt another devastating dip in her energy.  _I'm coming, hold on!_  The coils on his arms tightened, and his hands were growing numb.

Finally, he managed to jerk a single arm free, severing a cord in the process.

Taking his opportunity, he grabbed the second cable and ripped, liberating his remaining arm. Swooping when the mechanical beast attempted to grasp his neck, Goten gripped the silver rope at his leg with both hands and yanked, sending a seven-foot inorganic beast sailing straight for him.

With a single furious punch, he rammed his glowing fist through the artificial being's chest, sending hundreds of metal shards shattering all directions.

Immediately, he flew for the city and, for a sliver of time, everything slowed as he caught the last remaining General's gaze.

_If you even think about trying to stop me-_

But he didn't.

Instead, the two exchanged a quiet glance. Goten could almost hear the combative Saiyan's words in his ears, his expression was so telling.

_Save her._

The halfling stormed through, slicing the arid landscape in his wake.

During his stretch over the dense forest, he finally spotted structures on the horizon he could identify as man-made. When he approached the urban settlement, he heard her cries first.

"Stop hurting him, please!"

She was next to some strange, white-armoured alien he'd never seen before, completely distressed. There were others there too, huddled together and watching the scene before them in terror while one stood isolated from the rest.

 _Raditz._ The statuesque Saiyan appeared decidedly less intimidating as he clenched his fist against the floorboards.  _What is he doing?!_

Their voices dropped as Goten narrowed the distance.  _I'm almost there, Bulla,_  he urged, straining to hear the rest of their exchange.  _Just hang on a few more seconds._

Goten caught the fear in her expression as she stared at the downed Saiyan and it threatened to tear his chest right open.

At last, he reached them, crashing through and almost colliding with his uncle when she disappeared before his very eyes.

" **BULLA!** " Goten exploded, heart blasting against his rib cage as he heard her truncated scream. Frantically, he sought her ki, darting his head left and right.

But he was too late, the heiress was gone.

" **What the fuck is wrong with you!** " Goten belted, grabbing the older Saiyan by the shoulder straps. "She begs him to stop hurting you and you just let him take her?!"

Raditz ripped the hybrid's hands off and shoved him back with a guttural growl, "Do not cross me right now, son of Kakarot."

Adrenaline was still surging and Goten couldn't stop the fist that swung for Raditz' face. "She trusted you!" he roared, rigid bone grinding under his knuckles.

The Kaiser's head snapped back before he slowly brought it back to centre, nothing but cold-hearted rage attached to a murderous expression.

Before Goten had the chance to take another breath, he was horizontal, back digging into the dirt as he shifted under his uncle's weight. Fingers sprawled across his face, digging into his cheeks and temple as he squirmed out of Raditz' grasp. Drawing in both legs, Goten readied his feet on the towering Saiyan's stomach before firing an abrupt kick, sending Raditz flying backwards. Flipping onto his front, Goten bee-lined for the Kaiser, oozing with barely tethered fury. Never could he have imagined feeling such contempt for someone of his own blood.

Clenching Raditz' straps once more, Goten straddled the older Saiyan and lowered his head. "She trusted you," he repeated more quietly, seething as his deep brown orbs began to quake. "Defended you against her goddamn father." The Kaiser's own eyes tensed at the comment while Goten's fists rattled."I held my tongue. For her sake." His heart slammed at his throat as the words dripped out. "And it may have just cost her her life."

Electricity crackled around the hybrid Saiyan, snapping as a strike of lightning between them when their faces inched nearer. "If anything happens to her-" Goten warned, ears ringing as his chest constricted.

_-I will never forgive myself._

The slip in focus was enough to cost him the upper hand, and soon the hybrid found himself bucked to the ground.

A meaty paw reached down, grabbing the tip of Goten's chest piece and digging its fingers into the flexible fibres. "If she wasn't so unfathomably fond of you," Raditz hissed, canines glistening as he pulled the halfling back to his feet. "I would kill you where you stand."

Goten let out a snort. "I would love to see you try," he retorted, lip curling in a snarl. The red fog lifted as his mind began to clear. "Has anyone ever told you you've got as much personality as a plank of wet wood?"

Raditz sneered back through gritted teeth. "Stop your useless prattle," he bit. "And use those Earthling senses of yours to help me find her."

* * *

Groggily, heavy lids fluttered open.

Pressing into her hand, Bulla pushed herself up, wincing at the rawness in her throat when she swallowed.  _What happened?_  She dropped her forehead into her palm.

 _Oh no._  The mental haze was starting to clear and Bulla shot up hurriedly, stumbling as she struggled to find her footing on trembling legs.  _Not again._

Dread rose once she realised history was repeating itself: for the second time in a few short months, the heiress had woken up in an unfamiliar bed, kidnapped and separated from those she trusted most.

 _No, no, no._ Bulla ran for the walls, igniting a faint ki cloud and flattening her palms against the cool surface.  _Please,_ she begged, searching for anything resembling a door handle.

She heard a click.  _Yes!_

When the panel slid open, her heart sank,  _A bathroom._ Face scrunched.  _Always a freaking bathroom._ Flicking on the light, she caught her reflection in the mirror behind her and couldn't resist taking a closer look. Starting at the top, she found bloodshot eyes. Her complexion pale and sunken.  _Blood loss will do that to you._

As she trailed her gaze down, her breath hitched and fingers instinctively clutched at her middle.  _Oh my God._  Patting at the sallow skin, Bulla's stomach somersaulted as she registered her bare midsection.

Someone had removed her chest plate, sliced off her left sleeve, cut all along her bodysuit between her rib cage and hip line, and proceeded to draw in bold marker across her abdomen.  _What the fuck is that._ Her pulse skyrocketed.

In the crook of her left elbow was a square, raised medical patch. When she ripped it off, Bulla noted that the skin underneath was tender, bruised and - to her horror - punctured.  _Someone took my blood._ Her breathing grew hurried as she clawed through her memories, desperate to recall anything from earlier but coming up blank. Her last memory was the torment in Raditz' face as Sibe gave his final words.

 _Raditz._ Absently, she grazed her fingers over the still-raw wound at her side and her throat clenched, large blue orbs beginning to sting.  _I never expected..._

Bulla tilted her head back, willing her lids to stop welling.  _Not now,_ she urged herself, digging her nails into her palm with a sniff.  _Find a way out of here first._

Her eyes darted to the main room when fluorescent white lights flickered on, freezing in place when she heard rattling at the door she couldn't find earlier.

Two sets of footsteps wandered inside, murmuring inaudibly. Bulla readied her hand at her side and backed further into the bathroom, glancing around as she urged herself to come up with some brilliant escape plan.

"In here," one spoke, coming closer.

She gulped as she raised her palm, hearing her father's stern voice in her head reminding her how to keep calm when her figurative back was against the wall.

Two armoured soldiers stepped in, visors up on both of their white helmets. "I wouldn't recommend that," the first asserted, interrupting the release of a modest ki ball that was intended to create enough of a diversion that she could dash for the exit. He looked to be of the same race as the young soldier Turles had killed in the early hours of the morning, though perhaps a few years older and definitely more battle-hardened.

Clear yellow eyes regarded her dispassionately as she kept her stiff palm up, gaze floating between the two men in front of her. "Why not?" Her brows pinched together

"One." He cast a fleeting glance to her elbow, causing the heiress to do the same. The skin was still sticky from the medical patch and felt notably lame. "It's pointless. You don't have the power to take on the entire ship, and that's exactly what you'll trigger if you don't cooperate."

"You know nothing about my power," she hissed back, charging another ball in her hand. Unfortunately for her, her antagoniser wasn't too far off base. Her reserves were depleted, and drawing forth even a portion of her energy was a struggle.  _Did they do something to me while I was knocked out?_

He shrugged with grating nonchalance. "We know a lot more about you Saiyans than you realise."

Bulla narrowed her eyes at the comment. "What's two?"

"What?"

"You made it sound like there was more than one reason for me to play along," she said, looking to the second member of the duo. He was taller than the man she was speaking with and appeared equally unintimidated. "You started with 'one'," she clarified. "So what's two?"

The nearer guard loosened his arms from behind his back and slipped a hand inside his chest plate, pulling something black out of the breast and presenting the heiress with a handheld screen.

Bulla dropped her gaze to the shiny surface, eyes widening as she processed the audio-less footage. The video was grainy due to the lack of lighting, but she could still identify over a dozen sets of large black orbs, reflective as they glanced nervously around the blackened room. "Oh Kami," she uttered, fingers drawing to her mouth. Bulla dropped her hand, balling it into a fist as her glare turned vicious. "You bastards," the heiress seethed. "They're  _babies_."

"That's the point," the second soldier responded simply.

Bulla swallowed the growl that clawed at her throat. "What are you doing here?" Her tone was dangerous. "Why are you targeting the kids?"

"Come with us peacefully and maybe you'll get your answers," the shorter alien suggested calmly, slipping the tablet back into his suit.

With a slow inhale, Bulla lowered her lids and offered a conceding nod. When one of the guards extended an arm towards her, gesturing with his fingers for her to join him, she twisted back with a scoff. "I'm not holding your hand, asshole," she sneered.

The twitch at the end of his mouth betrayed his amusement at the outburst. "Don't flatter yourself." He grabbed her arm, slapping a three-inch wide cuff on her wrist before securing the other. "On the off chance you develop a case of itchy fingers," he explained with an infuriating smirk.

Palms together at her front, Bulla was lead out of her holding cell. With the light on in the main room, it was easier to see that there really wasn't much to the space at all. A single cot hugged the room's edge and a surveillance camera hung from the ceiling corner.

One guard strode into the passageway, followed by the wary demi-Saiyan, while the other tailed, watching their rear.

The three walked in silence as Bulla took in every detail she could manage, desperately seeking signs of the Saiyan youngsters along with the ship bay's whereabouts. After a series of turns, they entered an elevator.

Bulla stared daggers at the camera that hung near the door while the orange light at the front ticked up, highlighting the floors as the lift rose through the ship.

Once they hit the top, the door opened and the three poured out, only the sound of their footsteps travelling the hallway.  _Where is everybody?_  she wondered with growing unease.

Another voice hit her ears, faint at first but climbing the more they trudged on. She recognised the smoothness of it and instantly planted her feet, feeling the soldier's weapon behind her as he stumbled into her back.

"Move, Saiyan," he ordered, bumping the tip of his gun into her spine.

Bulla winced at the coolness of the rigid metal on her bare skin before taking another step forward, once again wracking her brain for a way out of this precarious situation. Physical resistance against the diminutive overlord wasn't possible, in her limited experience, but she refused to believe he was completely invulnerable.

"Look at them," she heard a snicker from an open doorway a few metres ahead. "Fighting their little hearts out. So precious."

Bulla and her escorts came to a stop once they reached what looked to be the largest room on the entire floor. Peering inside, she took in the space: a few minimalist sofas, the colour of snow, with an elegant glass coffee table in the middle, sleekly curved with razor sharp corners. Grand, heavy curtains were held open with silver ropes, pristine white and licking at the floor like sea foam.

Someone was stretched out comfortably on one of the couches, arm snaking along the spine while he watched the near floor-to-ceiling screen that demanded attention at the centre of the room. He was the only thing present that wasn't pale toned or completely transparent. With his back to her, only a black hat visible.

Sibe was levitating directly in front of the central screen, little arms resting behind his back while he watched the display with childlike enjoyment.

"Saviour," the front-most guard greeted with the dip of his forehead. "We've brought the blue-haired."

Sibe swivelled around leisurely, sweet smile already present as he regarded the halfling. "There she is," he beamed, spreading his arms as though introducing a guest of honour. "Please, come in."

As she stepped through the threshold, Bulla realised there was another present. "Cinna!" she exclaimed, eyes bulging.

Cinna sat bored on a sofa along the wall, dripping with indignation as she bore into the lustrous leader. She flicked her gaze right when she heard her name. "Bulla!" she called back, jumping to her feet.

"Ah-ah," Sibe scolded, wagging his finger. "Please stay in your seating." The Commander fell back down with a grunt, visibly straining against his invisible hold.

Begrudgingly, Bulla continued forward, maintaining eye contact with Raditz' esteemed ally while the guards bowed beside her, taking their leave. She turned her head once she was inline with the dark-clothed man on the sofa, spitting feathers as she took his appearance in more carefully. " **You!** "

He turned too, sharing that same wicked smile from so many weeks before. "We meet again." He held on to the brim of his hat and tipped it in greeting.

"Serce mentioned he's already had the pleasure," Sibe spoke, appearing genuinely pleased that everyone in the room was so well acquainted.

Bulla stared at the brothel-owner in disbelief before movement in the corner of her eye stole her attention.  _Trunks?_  There he was, clear as day on the screen in front of her, barking orders and looking more like her father than she'd ever seen him.

"He's definitely the one to watch." Sibe looked to the gangster. "Wouldn't you agree?"

Serce gave a single nod, the corner of his scarred mouth pulling. "I never expected such a sharp strategist amongst the dull-headed apes."

Bulla flinched at the jab but couldn't tear her eyes away from the digital display.  _What the heck is going on here?_  Suddenly, the image disappeared, replaced with scrambled static and white noise.

"Oh no," Sibe pouted, floating towards a control panel near his chrome-covered mini fridge. "We've lost another." He tapped at a few buttons and the video reappeared, though showcasing a different perspective of the same battle.

 _Trunks, Pan, Bardock, Turles._ Bulla ticked off the names as she spotted each one, little waves of relief washing through at seeing they were still alive and giving their all. She watched desperately for glimpses of two more Saiyans, praying to every god and eventually Shin himself that both men were okay.

"We're beginning to run out of scouters," Sibe sighed. "At this rate, I'll end up having to go out there myself again to enjoy the excitement."

Her eyes were transfixed as a crimson beam blasted out of the metal Goliath's eyes, aiming straight for a stern-faced General and singeing his navy cape as he narrowly missed a direct hit. "Turles!" Bulla jumped forward unthinkingly, only to see black a moment later.

"Where are my manners." Sibe shook his head disapprovingly as he tapped at his console. "Having this thing on while I have a room full of lovely guests." He looked to the petite Saiyan who turned her nose in contempt.

Involuntarily, Bulla began drifting forward until she found herself sitting alongside her old friend from Soul. Unable to move from her spot, she threw Serce a warning glare, hoping to remind him her bite was far worse than her bark.

"Why are you here?" Bulla demanded, fizzing as she cut right to the chase. "Why are you invading Crest, attacking the Saiyans, taking the children." Sibe watched quietly as she spat out in frustration, merriment teasing at his straight features. "Why are Cinna and I sitting here while the rest are out there fighting for their lives."

"You and Cinna," the Saviour purred. "Along with a few others, are about to become part of something absolutely extraordinary." There was a sparkle in his eye as his smile grew into a beaming grin. "And as though I needed any more sign from the heavens that my plan has divine approval," he continued, floating smoothly towards her and grazing her chin with a dainty finger. "I've been presented the opportunity to repay an old friend in the most gratifying way."

A shiver raced down her spine at the dark undertone.

"Before we dive into the finer details." He dropped his hand and spun around. "Tell me, girl. From where do you come?" Sibe listened over his shoulder for her answer. "You claim connection to the line of Vegeta, yet you're too old to have been born in the time since I was so unjustly deceived by Cinna's playmates."

She didn't answer, bracing for cruel retaliation at her defiance.

"I couldn't be sure at first, but you're certainly Saiyan. I saw your transformation myself." He waved dismissively. "No matter. It's fortunate that you've been uncovered regardless. Along with the other. Trunks, I've heard some call him." Bulla faltered at the mention of her brother and Sibe swivelled to face her once more. "I presume you two are something of an anomaly amongst the monkeys and will both be invaluable in time."

Bulla looked to Cinna questioningly but got nothing more than a confused shrug before Cinna transferred her gaze to the man in the centre of the room.

"I'm getting ahead of myself." He closed his eyes as a more modest smile tugged at his lips. "Now, I have to be upfront. While I've been given such beautiful insight into life amongst the savages thanks to a very special associate." Sibe looked to the man at Bulla's right who responded with a smug grin. His teeth were so pointy they had to have been filed. "Access has been limited for reasons beyond either of our control. And as a result, I've had to stitch a few things together myself."

Bulla shifted uncomfortably in her seat, sweat beginning to build on the back of her neck as she attempted to deduce what sort of information he'd ended up gaining since Raditz first picked the new scouters up from Soul. At the very least, she could assume that Cinna's ship hadn't been infiltrated since the scouter exchange would only have happened once both groups had landed on Crest.

 _That still means that Sibe was privy to the conversations between Raditz, Bardock and Turles for weeks,_  Bulla shuddered.  _Not good._

"Let's play a game," Sibe suggested, pressing his palms together in delight. "I make a statement, and you two confirm or deny it as true."

The room was silent, bar the sound of Serce walking across the marble floor and helping himself to a drink.

"You." Sibe started with the heiress. "True or false: the Saiyans knew I was back in their orbit and would be paying them a visit sooner or later."

Bulla paused, reluctant to divulge anything that could hamper an advantage later on. "I don't know," she answered truthfully.

"You don't know?"

"I never really spoke to them about official stuff," Bulla elaborated, mildly sheepish.  _Or at least zoned out whenever it came up between them._

To her surprise, his smile grew at the admission. "I can believe that." He headed back towards the panel that controlled his oversized TV. "Your relationship with my dear Raditz is of a different nature, not so?"

Her heart gave a single heavy pound at her ribs. "I don't know what you mean." Bulla decided to keep up the strategy of ignorance.

"Oh?" He tilted his head in innocent intrigue, "Are you two not..." and paused in thought. "How do you pair-bond types put it... Companions?"

"No," Bulla quickly denied.

He was still smiling at her, but his gaze hardened, evolving into a loose glare holding a hint of warning. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"You're saying that you and he have never partaken in any gag-inducing base acts that are typical of pair-bonding species?"

Bulla didn't answer this time, cringing at having such a thing brought up in a room full of strangers.

"Wrong one," Serce spoke up after taking a gulp from his glass. "My eyes across Soul say it was Turles who was all over her."

The glistening in Sibes icy-grey orbs only brightened. "Fascinating," he hummed. "That certainly explains a few things." He pressed a button at the control panel and soon a still image popped up that caused the heiress to choke. Immediately, she shot a glance to the woman on her left.

When Sibe hit play, all four watched as Turles walked through the passage of his home, swinging a lazy left at his bedroom door. Once inside, he tossed his scouter to the mattress causing the video to wobble until the bed stopped shaking. Bulla saw herself come into frame soon after, watching him curiously from the doorway. "Okay, seriously," she heard her own voice from the speakers, a cautious laugh underneath.

Bulla's pulse was building in her ears and her hands began to tremble.

"If it was anyone else-" the audio continued until she jumped from her seat.

"Yes!" she blurted. "Okay? Yes, Raditz and I slept together. More than once."

Serce let out a hearty chuckle as he continued to savour his drink, wrapping his serpentine lips around the rim of the glass.

"So what?" Bulla continued, relieved to see that Sibe had paused the video to listen to her explanation. "It doesn't mean anything."

Now the Saviour was the one to laugh and it gave her instant nausea. "It doesn't mean anything?" he repeated slowly.

The screen flickered before a new scene appeared, Bulla instantly recognising the ship's cafeteria. This time, the camera - so to speak - was trained directly on her. She was giggling near the kitchen door with Fern, both girls hunched over like school girls with a shared secret. There was too much ambient noise to possibly hear what was being said, and Bulla was struggling to follow why this video was even brought up in the first place.

For a brief second, the Bulla on the screen looked directly at the camera and her expression straightened before she twisted to show the wearer her back, dismissing them as she continued her conversation with her teenage cohort.

"Kaiser," a voice came through loud and clear and the camera panned right, showing the face of a low-level soldier. "Do you have a moment?"

"Make it quick," she heard Raditz respond as he turned his head once more to the pair of gossiping girls. Another Saiyan had joined the duo since he'd last looked at them and she had her arm draped over Bulla's shoulder while both wore easy smiles.

"I request five days leave once we reach Crest," the soldier put forward.

Raditz was quiet as he maintained his attention elsewhere.

"My mother's health is deteriorating and it seems her time approaches. My brothers and I intend on taking her to the Lapian Lakes for the cleansing… If I get home in time."

"Why do you come to me with this?" the Kaiser eventually voiced. "This is a question for your Captain." Turles strolled towards Bulla's steadily growing crowd, giving her low ponytail a tug and earning himself a swat, lip curling at her reaction. Fern's eyes grew to the size of beach balls at his arrival and her entire face flushed bright pink. When the General glanced down at her, she almost lost her balance.

"Vira says she needs the approval of her General and Nappa has just left us for the third fleet," he explained. "You're the only one aboard who can approve the request."

Throughout the conversation, Raditz' attention had barely wavered from the heiress, even trailing her once she'd waved goodbye to her friends and headed for the doors. Only after she'd wandered through and disappeared from view - without so much as a fleeting glance his direction - had the Kaiser finally looked to the man before him. "Five days." Raditz pushed into his hands and rose from the table. "Anything you need from Netta, tell her you have my approval."

"Thank you, Kaiser," he saluted before spinning on his boot and marching off.

The video paused then, and Bulla looked to Sibe in confusion. "Notice anything?" he lilted.

She didn't answer.

"I confess, I didn't think too much of it either at the time," Sibe admitted before progressing to the next one.

This time, her face was front and centre, big white teeth taking up the bulk of the frame until the footage began to play. Immediately she was hit with the sound of her own voice.

"Always on the clock," the heiress chuckled, her hand obscuring the camera as she reached for the device over his eye. She placed the scouter on his bedside table, the angle just enough for the viewfinder to capture their interaction. Raditz was sitting at the edge of his mattress, leaning back into his hands while the heiress slinked towards him. Slipping between his knees, she cupped either side of his face before lowering her head to meet his own. Long blue locks cascaded over his cheeks, falling past his shoulders like a waterfall.

Slowly, he lifted his hands from the mattress and brought them to her hips, gliding upward and pulling her towards him until the gap between their bodies diminished, impeding any further light from slipping through.

In the corner of her eye, Bulla could see Serce watching her with a raised eyebrow from the other end of the sofa and her face flushed. This unexpected invasion of privacy was beyond mortifying but her hands were tied until Sibe grew bored of his latest version of torment, and she refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing her squirm.

He paused the video again. "That's enough of that," he asserted. "No one wants to see what comes next." Under his breath, with a bitter hiss, he added, " _Vile animals_."

A new scene popped up. Someone walking down one of the ship's hallways with her favourite hangout nook in the distance. She could see her own aquamarine hair far off, and there was someone next to her. It was too far to tell who it was - all those dark heads tend to look more or less the same from behind if you're not close enough - but when she heard her own raucous laughter, Bulla immediately realised who the other had to have been.  _Only one person can make me laugh that hard,_ she acknowledged with a wince.

Bulla cringed even harder when she saw the look on her own face as the owner of the scouter drew nearer. She was looking up at the younger Son so dreamily, she wanted to scream at herself. Blue eyes were upturned and sparkling as she watched him share his tale. Onscreen-Bulla lowered her head to Goten's shoulder and he wrapped an arm around her, fingertips dragging leisurely over her upper arm.

As the steps drew nearer, she lifted her head, turning back to look at the approaching Saiyan. The lightness in her expression dropped as she gazed at the man behind her, catching the attention of the hybrid on her left. He looked down at her, still smiling warmly while she kept her own eyes on someone else.

The video paused once more, a lump growing in the heiress' throat.

"I know my pets," Sibe spoke icily, returning his hands to rest behind his back. "Especially my favourites."

Bulla silently begged him to shut off the monitor, sparing her the torture of having to stare at her own pathetic face. She remembered that moment all too clearly, thoughts turbulent as she sat with one Son while exchanging silent words with another.

"I know their leanings. Their habits," he continued his monologue, floating about the room. "I know their strengths and weaknesses. I know how they think and reason. I know their deepest most  _debilitating_ fears." Sibe spun around dramatically, eyes cold as the tundra drilling into her. "Do  _you_  know Raditz' biggest fear, little blue Saiyan?"

Bulla gaped. It had never even crossed her mind that Raditz feared anything. For the longest time, she wasn't even convinced he  _felt_ anything.

"I admit, he has changed over the years," Sibe continued, overlooking her silence. "He was more talkative before, not  _quite_  so serious. In fact-" He titled his head, as though considering this minor point. "-he's become rather like his father, wouldn't you say, Serce?"

"He has," the man in black nodded. "It wasn't that long ago that Bardock would be the one paying me visits, big man Raditz at his side as empty-headed muscle. Wasn't quite so good at keeping his mouth back then, drove his old man up the wall." Bulla saw Cinna roll her eyes at the exchange, clearly reserving her own opinions on the matter. "He got sharper though, over time."

"I don't blame him really." Sibe let out a forlorn exhale. "Running an empire will inevitably change you. It's a great responsibility, ruling all these ants. And not everyone is as cut out for it as I am." He pressed narrow fingers to his shiny breast bone. "Not to mention it requires a level of cognitive capability that Saiyans could simply never dream of reaching. Case in point." He brought his palms together, fingers interlocking as a sinister smile reappeared on his disgustingly angelic face. "My plan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try to keep chapters a bit shorter in case you found the previous one to be a bit much for a single update. I realise I could easily have split it into three, but it didn't feel right breaking everything up and spreading the battle over too many chapters.
> 
> As suspected, next chapter will not be the last. Surprise, surprise (Any BB readers, feel free to roll your eyes). It's tricky estimating this sort of thing sometimes, though the end is indeed near.


	28. Eluder

_Disgusting._ Bulla's teeth grit as she shook her head. Never in her life had she heard anything more abhorrent.

She looked down at her still-bare abdomen, the low lighting of the darkened room obscuring the lines across her stomach, and pressed her palm to warm skin.  _Never._ Her blood bubbled.  _I will never let them do this._

She barely heard Cinna's boot scrape across the hard floor as she rose to stand and wandered quietly around the empty space.

A white mist blew out of the General's mouth as she exhaled into the uncomfortably frigid room. "He spoke about this sort of thing before," she said, breaking the silence that had hung between them since they'd been escorted to their holding cell. "Said we were too slow at reproducing and didn't like the idea of taking any of his top soldiers out of the front line."

_But this?_  Bulla's face scrunched in revulsion.

"It makes sense to get to them while they're young," Cinna continued, markedly calm. "You can shape them into whatever you want." She turned to face the heiress, "Obedient. Loyal. Mindless," and loosened a smile. "Everything we weren't."

Bulla shivered.  _Is that what happened to daddy and Raditz with Frieza? Is that why he kept them alive for so long when he could simply have killed them too?_

"It will never take," Bulla asserted, seeping vitriol. "Sure, he'll get something fertilised in a test tube, but the fetuses will need to grow inside a living womb."

"According to what?" Cinna let out a snort. "Your planet's technology? I'm willing to bet it isn't quite up to this level, princess."

" _My one regret,"_ Sibe's voice played back in Bulla's ears. " _I would not be able to produce anything that carried King Vegeta's DNA."_  That's when he'd looked right at her, bone-chilling glee sparkling behind icy grey orbs. " _Until I learned of you and your brother."_

Bulla slammed her fist to the floor. That psycho was just tearing through, taking everything he wanted while the Saiyans fought blindly back on Crest. They'd played right into his hand - and of course they did! He'd known their strategy from the outset.

"Why aren't you more angry about this?" the heiress demanded. Cinna had barely said a word through his entire demonstration. And even now, while Bulla seethed on the damp floor, Raditz' General floated about the room with total nonchalance.

Cinna looked at her once more, the same cat-grin that Bulla had caught the first night she'd ever seen her, pulling at the corner of her mouth. In a flash Cinna appeared in front her, their noses almost brushing. With a menacing smile, the General pressed her index finger to her lips and tapped at her ear.

Someone was bound to be monitoring them while they awaited the next round of guards to direct them to the surgical rooms.

Blue brows drew together in scepticism. " _Are you plotting something?"_

_Play along,_  the petite Saiyan mouthed before taking a seat on the ground opposite her. "When the guards brought you upstairs earlier," she spoke casually, "You recognised me rather quickly," and cocked an eyebrow. "Apparently Raditz talks about me more than I give him credit for."

Bulla did as prompted, following her lead though watching carefully. "It was Turles, actually," she replied, eliciting a jovial laugh from her cellmate. "Raditz doesn't really talk about anyone."

"Of course," Cinna snickered, her smile growing. "I can only imagine what that grump says about me when I'm not around considering what he tells me right to my face."

Bulla smiled too, now markedly more at ease hearing that the older woman seemed to be hatching something of a plan. "You know," she sighed. "I actually thought I got him earlier." Cinna cast her a mild glance, interested faintly piqued. "I rammed my fist through his chest, just like Turles told me Raditz did." She was definitely paying attention now, small mouth pursed while she observed the heiress. "But there was nothing there, not even blood." Bulla shook her head. "The same thing happened when Raditz went for his skull. Nothing inside. He just reconstructed like some kind of machine."

Bulla frowned, still struggling to understand exactly what had happened outside the Saiyan battle school - in more ways than one.

Cinna went quiet for a few minutes, presumably considering this piece of information. "You're in love with him, aren't you," she finally said, more than asked. Perhaps Sibe's seemingly invulnerable body was not what she'd been mulling over. Immediately, the tone of the room shifted while she inspected a piece of dirt between her fingertips.

Bulla's breath caught. She certainly hadn't been expected the conversation to take  _such_ a dramatic U-turn.

"The other halfling," Cinna continued when the heiress failed to respond. "You were together before we-"

"We weren't," Bulla answered softly, wrapping her arms around her knees as she drew them in.  _But who knows if we could've been._

"You don't deny it though," Cinna prodded, lifting her gaze from the speck and observing the heiress. "That you're in love with Raditz' nephew."

"I'm not in love with him," Bulla grumbled into the top of her thigh, tightening her hold on her legs.

"Very convincing," the Saiyan retorted with a curled lip, flicking the rubble away. "I know your kind is rather affectionate." Cinna clapped her hands to loosen the dust on her palms and began to rise once more, restless. "But your brother and the quarterling weren't anything like what Sibe just showcased upstairs."

Bulla dipped her forehead in shame, burying her nose between her knees. She could have gone her entire life without anyone ever bringing up Sibe's bugged scouter footage.

"I assume you were lying earlier." Cinna's upturned eyes watched her with quiet curiosity. "When you said your tryst with Raditz didn't mean anything."

Instinctively, Bulla looked to the corners of the room, wary of what would end up being overheard.

"Don't worry about that," Cinna said, waving a dismissive hand at Bulla's surveillance concerns and lowering her head to meet their eyes. "I want to hear how Raditz stacks up next to Bardock's new favourite son." What little light there was reflected off shiny white canines, Cinna either unaware or entirely uncaring that this wasn't the sort of thing Earthlings spoke about with complete strangers.

Bulla let out a decidedly unfeminine groan and her ears began to ring. "I don't know," she eventually mumbled, glancing towards a nearby wall.

"You don't know?"

"I-" Bulla faltered, shoving down intrusive thoughts that were attempting to claw their way in. "I haven't really thought about it."

_Haven't wanted to._

Cinna stared at her, blank, as though she were speaking a foreign language.

"I underestimated him," Bulla finally admitted - to herself, mostly.

She heard a dry laugh. "Everyone's always underestimated him."

The comment was like a dagger in her chest.

Despite herself, Bulla had been dying to confide in someone for months. As much as she adored Fern, she couldn't bring herself to involve the teenager in such a mess, especially considering how deeply Fern admired her stoic Kaiser. She'd always assumed Pan would be the first to hear the truth - once she'd mustered the courage to come out with it. Though it seemed life had other plans. Life  _always_  had other plans.

"I told myself from the beginning it would never mean anything," Bulla uttered, voice low. "Or go anywhere. I thought he was under the same impression." She hesitated then, flicking her gaze up as she considered how open she  _really_  wanted to be with one of the guy's closest allies. "I didn't even notice that he started to change."

_Didn't want to notice,_ she corrected herself again.

The pure-blooded Saiyan kept her own gaze firmly fixed.

"Sure, he wasn't as impatient or abrupt as before," Bulla continued with a sigh. "But I figured we were just getting more comfortable around each other." She broke eye contact, unable to maintain her conviction while large black orbs watched so closely. "Somewhere along the line, I think we started to develop something of an understanding."

"When did you realise there might have been more to it?"

At the prompt, Bulla's mind flashed with scene after scene:

The look on his face when Sibe had her immobilised outside the battle school.

The ferocity of his kiss after he'd singed her stomach wound with his own fingers.

Raditz asking her, in his own quiet way, to stay alive for the upcoming battle.

She shook her head.  _It was before all that, Bulla_.

"Shepherd's Rock," the heiress said out loud, throat clenching at the memory. She'd been in full evasion mode by then, running from her situation like prey from a pack of ravenous wolves. But up on that cliff, with her grandfather's blood on the rock face behind her and the Saiyan civilisation at her front, reality had smacked Bulla across the face with a two-by-four.

Cinna appeared to be mulling her words, though didn't give away a thing. "Tell me about the halfling." Bulla looked up at the request, sceptical. "I've never spoken to him," the General shrugged. "I want to hear what this kid's like."

A smile began to form on the heiress' mouth. "He's a great person," she answered without hesitation, recalling their endless tomfoolery before Advent, and how weightless she'd felt whenever they were together. "Kind, patient, upstanding. He's a total clown," she chuckled, picturing his easy smile while the three of them sat around their little campfire fire on their remote spot on Ellis, each one blurting out foods they couldn't wait to eat as soon as they got home. "A true Son."

"Uh-huh." Now Cinna was this one casting the doubtful look. "And you're not with him, because…?"

As quickly as it came, Bulla's smile started to fade. "You wouldn't get it," she muttered, almost inaudible.

"Try me."

"He and I are just different, okay?" Self-resentment began to drip as Cinna poked at her constantly repressed thoughts. "He's everything I just said and more. While I'm... a mess." She let out a defeated exhale, an emptiness rising that she knew would consume if she allowed it too much room to spread, "I thought I could be different out here. Better," and ran her fingers through her knot-riddled hair. "It turns out it doesn't matter where you put me, I'm still the same idiot."

"You think you're an idiot for getting involved with Raditz?" Cinna let out a harsh laugh, staring at the heiress as though the very notion was absurd to her ears.

"No," Bulla murmured into to top of her thigh, tears beginning to well in her tired blue eyes. "I'm an idiot for getting involved with Raditz when I knew my heart wanted somebody else."

Hearing the words as they fell out of her own mouth sent an immediate punch to her gut and Bulla winced at the admission.

Cinna's smile slowly dissolved while she regarded the heiress, seemingly processing each new piece with great care. "So why Raditz then?" she settled on asking, tone still disarmingly neutral. "If you knew you felt so strongly for the half-breed."

"Because I'm an  _idiot_ ," Bulla repeated into her hands with a groan. "And selfish and short-sighted and…" She drew in a breath. " _I didn't want to want him._ "

If she was on earth, this would be her friends' cues to step in and rub her shoulder, reassuring her soothingly that nothing she'd just said about herself was true. But Cinna did no such thing. Instead, she continued to eye her, expression growing increasingly perplexed.

"What is Raditz to you?" Cinna's cool voice cut through her mental haze. "A placeholder? A distraction?"

Bulla recoiled,  _No,_ before shaking her head, the tips of her long hair swaying against the grime-covered floor in filthy clumps.

"Tell me then," Cinna said, even-toned and eyes unwavering. "How does the Saiyan princess see our beloved Kaiser."

On an inhale, Bulla recounted all the times she'd felt his rigid face under her hand after slapping him across the cheek for yet another callous remark. All the times she'd screamed herself red in the face at him being an oversized jerk. Unfeeling asshole. Remorseless bastard.

In the same breath, her cheeks warmed. It wasn't possible for her to think about the reticent Saiyan without simultaneously acknowledging how much he set her skin on fire, left her quietly calling for more and shattered her resolve time after time.

"He's a lot like the men in my family in some ways," she eventually spoke, staring at her hands while her mind continued to wander. "And yet unlike anyone I've ever been with." Recalling past relationships was almost embarrassing at this point. Those boys couldn't hold a candle. "He doesn't waste anything," she elaborated. "Not time. Not words. Not opportunity. He's so focused.  _So_  devoted."

Bulla looked up, reuniting their gazes.  _He's everything I'm not. And have always wanted to be._

"I can't stay away from him." Bulla exhaled as she replayed her single evening on Soul, leaning against the tavern wall and observing the enigmatic Kaiser while he shared a rare moment of warmth with his soldiers. "No matter how many times I told myself it had to end."

Goten's words in the forest rang in Bulla's ears,  _You don't want to go near anything that could get too real,_  and the lump in her throat grew. She'd run from one real situation right into another.  _And I made exactly the same mistake,_ she choked.

A rattle at the door set both Saiyans on high alert, each snapping their attention to the heavy panel. When it opened, light poured in from the hallway, casting the shadow of one of Bulla's earlier guards at the entrance.

"Come on you two. Time to cut you open."

* * *

_"I've learned from my mistakes," the diminutive leader declared from the centre of the room, nose lifted while his short arms rested behind him. "It was ambitious to think I could take full-grown Saiyans and mould them to my liking when their insolent ways were already so firmly set."_

_He floated towards the shorter of the two women, "Some lessons are expensive to learn," and smiled down at her, excitement beginning to leak. "But there is always something to be gained." Cinna responded by drilling into him with that same fiery heat Bulla had become so familiar with aboard the Saiyan fleet. "Like the chance to genetically engineer my very own warrior race, tweaked entirely to my liking and conditioned to absolute perfection."_

_Bulla physically recoiled at the statement, expression twisting and contorting as the words sank and disbelief rose._

_Images of familiar Saiyans flashed on the screen in front of them. Sibe's list of progenitors._

_All the Captains. All the Generals. Both Kaisers. Anyone who was, or who had bred, a Saiyan of respectable power._

_If her stomach wasn't already empty, she would have thrown up on the spot._

_He proceeded to yammer on about the beauty of genetic recombination. How extraordinary a process it was at creating individuals with such unpredictably remarkable attributes. The possibilities were limitless, he proclaimed, with a sufficiently diverse gene pool._

_Bulla fumed as she watched Pan's nimble form on the monitor, still fighting tirelessly with absolutely no awareness that she was being observed and evaluated so clinically._

" _She'd almost been killed off earlier by one of my mechs," Sibe explained, casual, while he turned to face the heiress. "And what a terrible waste it would have been to overlook her. We couldn't have known then just how powerful she was, but the way she ripped that thing apart once the boy stepped in." He shook his head with a wry smile. "Absolutely marvellous."_

_He tapped at the console, playing the footage back while Bulla shifted in her seat, casting a glance to the General. Cinna was watching too, quiet as she had been since Bulla had first stepped into the room, but trembling ever so slightly. She didn't appear scared, however. She looked downright murderous._

_Trunks' voice came through the speakers once Pan finished off her captor. "They're coming for the borderlands," he spoke into his scouter, prompting the airy alien to pause the screen once more._

" _Now there's something I've been itching to learn more about." He floated towards the two women, each shooting a hostile glare, "How is it-" and rested his arms behind his back, features turning cold. "That every time I deployed a new wave of grunts." He narrowed his eyes until they were thin slits. "Or gained a leg over one of my targets, someone was there to intervene." He zeroed in on the heiress, "Always the same four Saiyans sounding the bell," and inched closer. Bulla gasped when the wound at her side began to prickle, followed by a deep, building ache. "Four Saiyans I'd never even_ seen  _prior to recent events."_

_The pain climbed steadily, her breathing increasing with it until she let out a restrained cry._

" _Who are you four?" he demanded, voice low and foreboding. Without words, he heeded,_ Defy me at your own peril. " _And how are you able to discern individuals' whereabouts without scouters?"_

_Bulla brought her hand to raw throbbing flesh at her side, grinding her teeth to keep her mouth shut._

" _How did you know," he pressed, tone dropping to a growl. "That soldiers had infiltrated the school."_

_Warm liquid was beginning to pool under her fingers while heat cascaded up and down her torso._

" _Speak. Girl," he ordered through stiffened lips._

" _You won't kill me," Bulla ground out, head spinning from the agony. "You've just_   _admitted that Cinna and I are crucial to your whackjob plan."_

_His face was entirely blank as he gazed back at her. "I never said anything about you needing to be alive."_

_Icy cold fingers brushed at her abdomen, sending an instant shiver down her spine. She sank deeper into the couch, edging away as his skin-crawling touch grew firmer. "All I need from you." His voice was toneless, nothing more than a vibration. "Is right in here."_

_Every fine hair on her entire body bristled as her stomach somersaulted right up to her throat._

_In the corner of her eye, she caught the movement of her only ally, squirming as she levitated out of her own seat. Bulla exhaled in relief when the pain let up, throwing her head back as she clutched at her side. A pool of red sat beneath her, soaking into the pristine white cushion._

" _You may be new to my records." Sibe was calm as he kept his attention on the heiress, Cinna floating slowly towards him. "But you're an open book to me now."_

" _Whatever he does," Cinna growled, speaking for the first time in hours as she bore into the diminutive alien. "Do not give away anything."_

" _Now now," Sibe chided, tilting his head to the General in warning. "I'll be the one handing out instructions, precious Cinna."_

" _ **Anything**_ _," she repeated seriously before her mouth violently snapped shut._

_He swivelled on his boot then and spoke into the console. "Bring me one of the children."_

" _No!" Bulla jumped up, rushing forward but coming to an abrupt stop centimetres before his back._

_He rolled his head to listen over his ear, cool grey eyes half-lidded and watching her in calm interest._

" _We're-"_

" _Bulla!" Cinna cut in impatiently. "Don't- Ah!"_

_Bulla couldn't turn. Neither her body nor her head, though she feared for the woman behind her._

" _Please forgive her incessant interruptions." Sibe's voice was back to smooth as he offered the heiress an ingenuine smile. "I had such difficulty breaking her in the first time around. Clearly, years on a loose leash has been detrimental for her charm. Continue."_

_His hand hovered over the button for the intercom and Bulla watched his fingers for a few seconds before swallowing dryly. "We're different."_

_His jaw tensed as his hand lowered. "Don't waste my time," he warned, silkiness from mere moments before steadily dissolving._

" _We're..." Her lids steadily closed._ I can't tell him the truth,  _she faltered, hearing her heart pound in her ears._ If he's somehow missed the part about us being from earth and finds out that a human-Saiyan breeding leads to a potentially stronger warrior, I bring home right onto his radar.  _His gene pool would skyrocket_. " _We're clairvoyant," she blurted, eyes staying trained on his fingers._

_He cocked an eyebrow at her, interest apparently piqued. "Is that so?" he lilted, removing his hand altogether and rotating back around to face her. "One of the abilities granted to you by your other half, I presume."_

_Bulla had to suppress the gasp that almost fell out of her mouth. "How did you-?"_ He must've overheard one of the other Saiyans referring to them as hybrids _, she realised, skin paling and stomach sinking like a stone_

_"Your blood." He looked to her arm and, subconsciously, Bulla clutched at the bruised skin in the crook of her elbow. "It didn't match the others." Sibe floated towards her then, bringing spindly white fingers to her ashen cheeks. "Hybridisation isn't ideal," he weighed, tilting his head side-to-side in consideration. "Though it doesn't seem to have impacted your capacity for power." His digits were cold and stiff as they dug into tired flesh, feeling more like rods of steel than anything live or organic. "Whatever else is in you, we'll breed out of our lines soon enough."_

* * *

Bulla cast an apprehensive look to Cinna as she walked over first, obediently presenting her wrists with a saccharine smile. The guard applied her cuffs before gripping her bicep and leading her ahead. A second guard did the same to Bulla while two more positioned themselves at the head and tail of the line, six of them making their way forward.

As they marched, Cinna faintly turned her head, eyeing an unmarked door before returning her attention to the passage.

A few minutes later, they reached the medical wing and two guards posted themselves outside a set of double doors while the others piled in. After another short passageway, one of their escorts opened yet another door, revealing a spacious office that fed on to two other rooms.

"Don't touch anything," the doctor barked immediately to the guards. "Can't have your filthy hands contaminating everything before I've even begun."

The soldiers quietly positioned themselves at the entrance, ignoring the quip while the doctor prepared his needle. Cinna stood patiently, black eyes darting to the corner of the room every few seconds. Bulla twisted around too, hoping to see what had the General's divided attention, and spied a surveillance camera hanging from the ceiling.

As the doctor neared, Cinna's eyes remained trained on a camera and Bulla wondered if she should have been doing something then, perhaps creating a diversion of some kind to interrupt the administration of the sedative.

She put out her foot and began inching towards the back wall as discreetly as she could but looked back up when she heard a muted thump, eyes widening when she spotted the doctor slumped over Cinna's shoulder.

"Hey." One of the guards stepped forward. "What just happened?"

Cinna immediately spun around, swinging her legs out at the same time and knocking him to the ground with a dull thud. Her foot was out, catching him before he caused an audible crash and alerted anyone who could have been nearby.

Bulla acted quickly, dashing for the second soldier before he even had a chance to react. Her hands were still clasped together, and while she suspected she had the strength to break out of her bindings, there was no telling whether forcing them apart would raise an alarm of some kind.

Sweeping his legs out from under him, Bulla buried her knee into his sternum as she covered his mouth with her hands. Cinna appeared behind her, placing a single finger on his forehead before Bulla heard a pulse. Instinctively, she turned away, drawing in a sharp breath when his struggle came to a stomach-flipping stop.

_"Drag them to that back corner,"_ Cinna instructed, nodding to the wall.  _"Quickly, before the camera swings back around. It's got a blind spot right there."_ She pointed to a potted plant.

Bulla did as she said while Cinna quietly dropped the doctor back in his chair, ensuring to keep him upright as though he were looking over something on the desk in front of him.

Glancing to the doors, Bulla heard no sign of rushed footsteps, the other posted guards seemingly none the wiser.

" _This way."_ Cinna headed for one of the adjoining doors while the camera swooped to the right. Once both were inside, she brought her bound wrists up to her mouth and Bulla spotted something shiny appear between her teeth as she fumbled with her cuffs.

After a few breaths they popped open and Cinna gestured for Bulla to pass her own wrists over.

" _Where the heck did you get a key from?!_ " Bulla had to stop herself from yelling. They were in a supply closet, by the looks of things. No cameras in here.

"Turles didn't tell you about my magic fingers?" Cinna's eyes traced over the ceiling. "I grabbed it off one of the guards while they took me to Sibe earlier. Had to wait for the right moment to-  _Dammit!_ " she hissed. "We need to get access to their ventilation network before the other soldiers get suspicious. I don't know how much time they're expecting the doctor to be preoccupied with us. Could be hours, could be minutes."

Bulla's gaze dropped to the floor. So this was the General's great plan? Disappear during the middle of surgery. " _Hey, what's that!_ " She pointed to the skirting. "Behind that shelf."

Cinna dropped to her haunches and gently nudged bottles of green liquid aside. "Bingo." Emptying the bottom shelf, she pried the vent cover open. "You first."

Bulla flattened on to her stomach, the cool floor giving her a jump before she shuffled inside.

The shaft was beyond cramped. For once in her life, she wouldn't have minded being a little smaller. Cinna slid in after her, ensuring to pull all the supplies back on the shelf before replacing the cover. The pure-blooded Saiyan was significantly more compact and moved as though she'd done this very thing a thousand times.

"Don't make a sound," she said softly. "We're looking for their surveillance room. Ideally, we'll make it there before they notice we're gone."

Bulla frowned. "What happens if we don't?" This plan was way too finicky for her liking.

"I'll figure something out."

* * *

She didn't know how long they'd been crawling in these shafts but every guard they'd dodged appeared at ease. No siren had blared over the ship's communication system to alert the loss of their captives, but each second that passed put her further on edge. How much time did they have until the rest noticed? Until the ship went on lockdown and the children became bargaining chips to get Bulla and Cinna to show themselves?

The heiress cast an absent glance through the vent at her belly and instantly slammed her palm to her mouth to stop the gasp that threatened to escape.

A string of white-armoured soldiers were marching through, carrying limp bodies in their arms.

_Caya!_ Bulla cried out quietly, seeing the unconscious Captain slung over one's shoulder, limbs swaying heavily. Her breathing stopped altogether when she recognised another Saiyan female, far slighter in build: the Kaiser's mother.

Bulla looked ahead, desperate, but Cinna was already turning the corner, entirely unaware of what was happening right under them. With another panicked glance, Bulla watched the train of trafficked Saiyans, freezing on the spot when her eyes landed on an impossibly familiar head of hair. Hair she'd felt under her fingers so recently, thick and soft.

Goten walked quietly, head high while his wrists remained secured in front of him.  _How did they get him?_ Bulla baulked as all blood drained, earning herself a boot to the face in the process. Cinna threw her an impatient look, grilling the heiress to keep moving.

There was nothing she could do right then, except risk exposing herself and her fellow escapee, so, reluctantly, Bulla tore away and proceeded forward. Numb.

More dread-filled minutes passed until Cinna came to an abrupt stop. Looking at the heiress, she pointed down.  _We found it!_ Bulla gasped, thanking all the Gods that Cinna's risky plan had actually worked.

Soundlessly, the General popped the cover. " _Wait here_ ," she ordered before sliding through the gap. Bulla watched as Cinna landed with the grace of a cat, silently stalking towards one of the seated surveillance operators. There was a large console at the centre of the room covered in screens and wide enough that one couldn't see to the other side.

Snaking her hand past the first guard's shoulder, Cinna covered his mouth the precise moment she released a single energy beam through her finger and into the base of his skull.

Catching his head as he slumped over, she lowered his face to his work station and sank back to her haunches.

Sneaking around to the other side, she did the same with the second operator before taking a moment to familiarise herself with the computer and hit a few buttons.

"Okay," she exhaled, offering a tentative smile to the heiress. "You can come in now."

Awestruck, Bulla snapped herself out of her daze before joining her fellow Saiyan in the security room, eyes immediately falling on the dozens of displays embedded in the central console and seeking one in particular.

"We need to find the children," Cinna said, her own eyes scanning hurriedly. "I thought I heard them earlier behind one of the doors, but I couldn't be sure. There!" She slapped her finger to one of the many screens.

Sure enough, there they were, huddled together like cattle. Some were too young to even realise what was going on, while others seemed well aware that this wasn't normal protocol. Each display had a series of letters and numbers in the bottom left corner, which Cinna theorised may be coordinates of some kind. They could use those sequences to find where each camera as operating.

"They got more than just the kids," Bulla uttered, trying to keep herself steady. "I saw- Oh my God, Cinna." She pointed to another one of the green-tinted displays.

Sitting on the edge of a single sleeper cot, forearms resting over the top of his thighs, was a spiky-haired Saiyan with a dark cape hanging at his back. Both women watched, fixed, as the door to his cell opened. Immediately, he stood tall while another figure was unceremoniously kicked inside, stumbling as he attempted to stop himself crashing right into the first.

_No._ Bulla's chest clenched.  _No no no._ Sibe's plan was working. One-by-one, he was successfully abducting his specially selected Saiyan fighters. Now with an extra General and hybrid to add to his collection.

"They've got Gine too," Bulla muttered, catching Cinna's brief moment of hesitation in the corner of her eye. "Is there a way to hear what they're saying?" she added, watching while Goten and Turles spoke inaudibly.

"Probably," the older Saiyan answered quietly. "But I don't know how. And I don't want to risk bringing attention to us by hitting the wrong combination of buttons."

Bulla paused, narrowing her eyes and cocking her head when she spotted a strange statue on one of the displays, the room otherwise empty. "What's this?" she pointed. On closer inspection, it wasn't a statue. Rather, something small, fist-sized, and suspended in a vat of liquid.

Cinna looked too, bold brows drawing together in confusion. "I… have no idea."

"Could be important if it gets its own twenty-four seven surveillance."

The pure-blooded Saiyan continued to eye the footage while Bulla transferred her attention back to Turles and Goten.

"We should free them before we do anything else," she suggested, watching while they talked with remarkable civility.  _Kami, I wish I could hear them right now._ "More hands to help." Just then, Turles seemed to notice the camera, looking right at it and speaking slowly while Goten pivoted on his boot and did the same.

Her heart leapt seeing their faces so clearly, two sets of dark eyes cutting into her like a hot-wire through foam. That is, until Turles fired a small energy stream and destroyed the device.

"Do you think you can reach them without being caught?" Cinna put forward, still eyeing the other screens. "Remember that portal Sibe used before we were taken away earlier? I see a few more around the ship that we should be able to use to get off this thing. If you go after the others, it leaves me free to secure our exit."

"I can do that," Bulla nodded, albeit apprehensively. "I'll go through the vents again." She paused as she realised, "We can't have much time until the guards notice that they're not hearing from the two in the office."

"Stay hidden either way," Cinna ordered. "Avoid the cameras. Someone may come in here after we leave and spot one of you wandering around. I'll take care of these two." She gestured to the fallen guards at the computers, "Meet me here," and pointed to a spot on the digital map she'd pulled up earlier. "East wing, bottom floor. It looks to be the least monitored of the exit portals."

Bulla took a few minutes to familiarise herself with the ship's layout and commit it to memory before turning to leave.

"You might need this." Cinna tossed the opener to their cuffs. "Leave no trace that you were ever there," was her final instruction. "Understand? No noise, no damage. Not a single piece out of place."

"Got it," Bulla gave another nod, squeezing the metal key in her fist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case some of you are wondering: Yes, this was indeed an opportunity for me to explore an idea that I didn't get to take very far in another fic. Although, with a few tweaks to the process this time around. And with a villain that's repulsed by the act of copulation ~ :D
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	29. Heroine Pt I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Hello. Show of hands, who still remembers this fic and wtf is going on? :) Kudos to you if you answered positively, I maybe love you for it. For those of you with memories more like mine, here's a refresher:
> 
> After Bulla was unexpectedly captured by our pal, Sibe, she and Cinna had the pleasure of listening to his spiel about the beauty of genetic recombination, and how exciting it would be to engineer a whole new generation of superior fighters. Forget about pair-bonds, we've got selective breeding going on! On their way to be harvested, Cinna catalysed an escape, and the two discovered that Goten and Turles too had been apprehended somewhere along the line. In the final scene, the two ladies split up. Cinna was in charge of getting them out of dodge, while Bulla was tasked with freeing the two look-alikes.
> 
> Does any of this sound familiar? I hope so, because that's where today's update begins!

This was the closest she could get to Turles' cell through the vent shafts, the rest would have to be done on foot.

Bulla waited for the patrolling guard to continue his circuit, watching through the metal grating as he strolled beneath her and towards the end of the corridor. After a few moments of complete silence, she lifted the cover and floated down, ensuring she was out of view of any cameras before closing it behind her.

Continuing down the lengthy passageway, she turned a corner, finally reaching the heavy door she'd been seeking and spinning the vault-like handle, faintly hearing two sets of low, rumbling voices coming to a stop on the other side as she did so.

Slowly, Bulla nudged the door open, aquamarine eyes widening when she spotted two outstretched palms aimed right at her, both holding flickering orbs of ki.

"Bulla!" Goten was the first to drop his hand, all harshness from his features disappearing.

Despite the time pressure, Bulla couldn't help herself. As soon as she saw soft Son eyes staring back at her, she dashed across the room and flung her arms around his neck. "What happened?" she cried into his collar. "How did they get you two?"

He returned her warm embrace with an exhale, cradling the back of her head as he leaned a stubbly cheek against her temple. For just a moment, she allowed herself to melt against his chest plate, relishing the reassuring swell of his energy and soothing cloak of his arms, but felt him stiffen when his hand brushed over her exposed spine.

"What did they do to you?" he frowned, arms outstretched as he held her in front of him, checking her over in concern.

Bulla tore away, hopping over to Turles and drawing in the tell-tale odour of blood, sweat and electrical smoke as she gave him a squeeze. "Don't worry about that," she murmured into the General's shoulder, his rough fingers vaguely grazing over the small of her back. "We need to get out of here. Cinna's organising our escape route as we speak and they're going to notice we're gone any minute now."

Goten broke into an unexpected grin as he looked to the older Saiyan. "You two are rescuing us?" he chuckled, the familiar sound floating to her ears like a melody. "We came here to find  _you."_

Bulla pulled back then, casting a look to Turles too, albeit a more sceptical one. "You got yourselves caught on purpose?"

Turles glanced down at her, collected, but with a hint of amusement seeping through. "You think I'm incompetent enough to get myself overwhelmed by one of these low-lifes?"

She shoved him away with a scoff but couldn't bury the elation that was pulling at her mouth.

"You were worried about us?" Bulla prodded Turles in the cheek and he turned away with a snarl. "You're not even denying it!" she laughed, the first in what felt like years.

Abruptly, he gripped her wrist, interrupting her monkeying, and threatened, "I'll leave you behind," with zero lasting impact.

Bulla beamed, "No you won't," and twisted around, leading him to the door. "Alright, let's get out of here before the guards make their rounds again."

Poking her head out, she checked both ways and waited for the camera to swivel before stepping outside. One hand remained on Turles' arm as reassurance that they were still close, while Goten covered their rear.

On reaching her trusty vent, the heiress looked from the opening to the two Saiyan men and back again, realising she had a problem.

"You two aren't going to fit," she mumbled. Both were too broad.  _She_ had barely squeezed within the narrow walls as it was.

 _I should have thought about this._ Bulla pressed her palm to her forehead with a groan.  _Now what?_

"I wouldn't have gone along with it anyway," Turles declared brusquely, crossing his arms as he eyed the grating. "Evasive manoeuvres are Cinna's modus operandi, not mine." He pivoted on his boot, preparing to stomp down the hallway when Bulla grabbed onto his cape, halting his exit and earning herself another look of annoyance.

"Where are you going?" she hissed. "This ship is crawling with guards and surveillance. Do you know how much trouble I've gone through just to reach you guys without getting noticed?"

"Pah," he dismissed. "Anyone who's unfortunate enough to encounter us will-"

" _No!_ " Bulla shoved her index finger right up to his face. "We're not just going to steamroll through here, Turles. They'll notice if people stop responding to calls and orders," she scolded. "If anyone catches wind of us being on the loose and up to no good, they'll sound the alarm. Who knows what they'll do to the children as retaliation."

"Is there a back way of some kind?" Goten suggested, glancing around the passage. "Somewhere that gets less foot traffic. We're a little exposed out here."

Goten was right, they couldn't just hang around a major hallway like this. "Follow me." Bulla jerked Turles behind her and stepped forward, taking the lead. "From what I saw on that map Cinna pulled up, each floor is laid out the same way. We need to find ourselves a stairwell since the elevators are a no-go." To her surprise, the General conceded and all three proceeded towards the single door at the end of the hallway.

As they approached it, Bulla pressed her fingers to the panel and put out her feelers, seeking any possible signs of life on the other side. When she came up empty, she sent a cautious glance Goten's way and he gave her a nod, confirming that he couldn't pick anything up either.

She snaked her head through the threshold, watching for guards and noting that this new area was equally sprawling. As long as she stuck east, she reminded herself, they were sure to find themselves some stairs.

After fifteen painstaking minutes of sneaking, pausing, and intermittently holding their breaths, Bulla spied the doors to the stairwell. They were so close she could almost taste the hundreds of boots that must have passed over those noisy steps this past week alone.

Goten crossed first, soundless, but as Bulla leaned out from behind the safety of the obscuring wall, she felt an arm wrap around her middle and suddenly yank her backwards, feet slipping right out from under her.

"Hey!  _Hmph-_ "

Her mouth was clamped shut by a meaty hand covered in dirt and crusted blood. She wriggled around, about to protest Turles' abrupt manhandling, when she registered multiple sets of footsteps at the end of the corridor.

"Did you hear something just then?"

She sucked in a breath at the foreign voice.  _Stupid!_  Bulla berated herself. So fixed she was on crossing that final hurdle, Bulla hadn't even picked up the arrival of new patrolling guards on their floor.

They marched down the passage, heading straight for her, when the heiress was unceremoniously hauled through the door of a nearby room.

Calling it a 'room' was generous, she found as soon as she'd gotten her bearings. Even without any light, it was clear there was barely enough space for a single person, let alone two - one of which was a large, brawny Saiyan.

Bulla almost shrieked when something sodden fell onto her face, but once again Turles' hand shut her up before she had a chance to give away their impromptu hiding spot. Her face scrunched as she shoved the dank mop head off her cheek, tossing it to Turles instead and earning herself a stern scowl in response. She had nowhere to go to avoid it either, squashed against his armour as they huddled awkwardly in their cleaning closet.

Both slowed their breathing and tilted their heads to the door when footsteps approached, one guard's shadow visible in the sliver of light peeking through the bottom of the entrance.

"Was it this way?" she heard him say. He appeared to be checking the passageway, taking his time as he surveyed the surrounding area. Bulla winced when the shadow turned towards them, silently urging him to move on and seek the source of the noise elsewhere.

"What seems to be the problem, boys?"

This time the voice was familiar and dripping with slime.

 _Serce_. Her stomach somersaulted. Instinctively, she grabbed Turles' fist when a ball of light began to collect within it, no doubt intended for the two souls now hovering outside their door. " _Wait,_ " she insisted, almost inaudible.

"We thought we heard something," the soldier answered simply. When the handle began to rattle, she held her breath, all but dying when the door actually clicked open.

"And what, exactly, are you expecting to find?" Serce questioned, padding closer. Her heart was pounding in her ears and she was unable to blink. Instead, her eyes remained fixed on the narrow strip of light that was widening, millimetre by millimetre, at the door's jamb.

Sweat began to trickle down the back of her neck while a whirlwind whipped through her stomach. If Serce discovered them, it was over. They could potentially have bought themselves some extra minutes if they silenced a guard or two, but killing one of Sibe's peers would be noticed in a flash.

Turles pinched an unexpected hand at Bulla's waist, drawing her nearer and pressuring her further into his front as the door inched open.

"Could be anything," the guard replied. "A stowaway, perhaps. Or maybe one of the Saiyan pipsqueaks managed to slip away."

Mercifully, the door stayed in place while the outside exchange continued, distracting the soldier from his initial task.

Bulla dared spare a look at her accomplice.

Dark as the room was, she was almost certain she'd caught a turbulent look in the older Saiyan's eyes when she met his gaze - one she'd definitely seen before - and, immediately, she flushed, face growing even hotter until both looked away uncomfortably.

 _Don't think about it._ _ **Don't**_   _think about it,_ she urged herself, lids squeezing tightly.

"I thought I heard it come from somewhere over here," a more distant voice spoke, causing the nearby guard to hesitate. The door edged further open, but he wasn't looking in. Instead, he leaned away, fingers gripping the handle as he called out to his partner.

"Are you sure?"

Bulla jumped when she heard clattering down the hallway,  _Goten, no!_ followed by two sets of boots rushing away from their location. Desperately, she sought Goten's energy signature, but he was keeping himself completely masked.

Serce was still hanging around outside, muttering to himself about something she couldn't decipher, until he reached for the handle himself. After closing the closet door, he ambled away, Bulla and Turles listening for the sound of his softening footsteps until they heard nothing for at least a few minutes. Once they were certain all was clear, each let out a simultaneous exhale.

"Oh my God," Bulla breathed in relief, resting her steaming forehead against Turles' blissfully frigid chest plate.

When the door opened a second time, the heiress, braced herself for mayhem until she recognised Son Goten on the other side. His cheeks were inflated while he ran his fingers up his face and through his spikes.

After wrenching the door open fully, he reached out a hand, giving Bulla something to grab on to as she tentatively stepped over the collection of buckets and assorted cleaning supplies at her feet.

"That noise from earlier," she uttered, nerves officially fried. "That distracted them from our hiding spot. Was that intentional, or..?"

"Uh..." he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and directed her towards the double doors that opened onto the stairwell. "I meant to do that."

* * *

"You made it," Cinna's cheerful face greeted them as they entered the large empty room, the fleet commander rising from her kneel where she appeared to have been inspecting something on the ground.

"Only just," Bulla murmured, absently rubbing her fingers over her neck. "What's that?" She nodded towards the raised platform at Cinna's feet.

"Our ticket home." Cinna stepped towards the surlier of the three. "Couldn't help yourself, I see," she tutted, shaking her head in clear mocking. "You couldn't dream of letting me have an adventure without you."

Turles turned away but stayed rooted to the spot. "It wasn't my idea."

She let out a laugh, evidently tickled. "Oh, I'm sure it wasn't," Cinna giggled snidely. "But I bet it took absolutely no convincing to get you on board with it."

For a fleeting moment, Turles' eyes snapped to Bulla before flicking back and meeting the gaze of his fellow General. Cinna's lips curled even higher as she cast a slow glance to the heiress herself before spinning on the ball of her foot and returning to her earlier task.

"We've got ten minutes," she stated.

"Until what?" Goten walked towards her, dropping down to trace his fingers over the illuminated circle embedded in the floor.

"Until they realise Bulla and I aren't unconscious in the surgical rooms, or minus all of our unfertilised ova."

"Wait,  _what?_ " The dark-haired demi-Saiyan's expression dropped as he looked to Bulla for a clearer explanation, but she ignored his confusion for now, finding Cinna's comments  _somewhat_ more alarming.

"How do you know we only have ten minutes?"

"Got my hands on one of their communicators on my way over here," Cinna answered, tapping her foot to a large pedal on the floor and summoning a sizeable portal right in front of the older halfling, causing him to fall backwards and catch himself on outstretched fingers just in time. "I've been keeping my ears open for updates since we separated earlier."

"Where does this lead?" Goten tentatively inched his hand towards the glimmering gateway. It looked almost like a waterfall, Bulla decided, except the water appeared suspended in time instead of racing downward like it normally would.

"You tell me," Cinna shrugged. "I haven't been able to check it out myself since I couldn't trust it wouldn't close with me on the other side, or worse, only partially through."

Bulla baulked at the thought, watching as Goten carelessly plunged his fingers through the mysterious opening. Soon, his entire arm was swallowed up, followed by a foot and, eventually, his face.

 _Kami, he's just like his dad sometimes,_ she grimaced.  _Doesn't even take a moment to fear for his personal safety._

Half of his body was through, only a single leg still remaining ship-side, before he backtracked.

"That was weird," was the first thing he said once he was back in one place. With a light shake of his head, he added, "Looks like it takes us to the forest, near where I was first stationed."

"That'll do." Cinna removed her foot and the portal soon disappeared.

Bulla inhaled slowly, taking a moment to slot everything into place. "So our getaway is nailed down... what do we do now?" she asked cautiously. "How do we rescue a bunch of Saiyans, as well as a dozen kids, within seven minutes without getting noticed?"

"We don't," Cinna stated simply, crossing her arms as she glanced casually around the room.

 _Um?_ Bulla glared at the commander, pulse beginning to climb. "Don't tell me we're just going to leave them all behind," she demanded. "Caya's up there! And Gine! And-"

"Bulla," Turles interrupted her, nodding to his fellow pureblood. "I know that look. She's already figured it all out."

_Is that true?_

Bulla dared hope it was. Her heart couldn't take much more of this. Every time she thought she'd hit an insurmountable mountain, another larger one revealed itself beyond the last.

A weighty wave washed over her then, reminding her long she'd been running on empty and how desperately she needed a simple moment to herself. She'd surely have gotten no more than three hours of sleep before she sensed Turles approach the hybrids' temporary home in the early hours of the current day.

 _Is it still the same day, even?_ she wondered to herself.  _How much time has passed since this all started?_  It felt like a lifetime at the very least.  _The night before wasn't any better_ , she mentally added. She'd spent virtually her entire evening at Turles' house, much to her own surprise, only dragging herself home barely an hour before sunrise.

Fern's bed may as well have been a pile of misshapen bricks, it was so unfit for restful slumber. To Bulla's fortune, that was only one and a half nights of her life.

_When the heck was my last proper sleep though?_

Still walking herself through her hazy timeline, Bulla finally reached the last evening she'd spent in Raditz' company - the day she was so unexpectedly reunited with the man in front of her.

 _Has it really only been a week since he joined Raditz' ship?_ she pondered in disbelief.  _Surely not._

Goten was looking at her now, expectant for some reason.

"Bulla?"

"Yes?" she answered, lifting her eyebrows and feigning attention.

"Did you hear what Cinna just said?"

"Maybe?"

She felt firm fingers wrap around her bicep and lead her back towards the doorway she'd just entered through.

"I'll explain along the way," Turles asserted. She turned around as he dragged her away, a frown forming when she realised Goten and Cinna were staying behind.

"Be careful," Goten called out, his thick black brows pinching together while he watched her leave. "If you get in trouble-"

She didn't get to hear the end of his sentence as the door whipped closed, shutting his words behind them.

"Brats first," Turles commanded. She observed his profile as they waited at the passage wall, noting that he was likely listening for something - she'd seen him do it enough times in the past forty-eight hours to recognise the look. "What?" he barked, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"You care," she said earnestly, a pang in her chest as she thought back to her earlier, discarded hopes for the Saiyan warriors. "You know Sibe could kill you in an instant if he finds you, but you're risking your life anyway. For the others."

He was quiet for a few seconds before responding, "This is what it means to lead." He surveyed the hallway before stepping out. "Raditz would be doing the same thing if he was here right now instead of me."

The latter statement gave her pause and, before she had a chance to stop herself, she babbled, "Where is he right now? Is he okay? The last I saw, he was struggling on the ground outside the b-"

"Stay focused," he cut her off. "Raditz is fine. Doing what he needs to do."

Another question formed on her lips.

She resented herself for wanting to ask it, but it came out regardless. "What happened," she hesitated, dignity slowly bleeding away while they made their way back to the stairs. "After Sibe took me. What did Raditz do?"

She couldn't quite pose the question that was really on her mind.  _Did he say anything to you? Is he... worried about me?_

"He ran into the half-breed," Turles answered while they floated up the stairwell. "And they hatched a plan."

"He and Goten worked together?" She gulped at the thought, a stone in her stomach sinking.

"What's with all the art?" Now he was the one to prod, brushing a fingertip along one of the squiggles at her midsection.

"Sibe wants children," Bulla said bluntly. "He's going to make them himself."

The contortions in Turles' face nearly had her rolling in an instant. Not once during the near two months she'd been in his company had she ever seen the grumpy Saiyan so expressive. "That came out wrong," she snickered into her hand. "He's going to make them himself  _in a laboratory,_ " she corrected. "You're on his list too, so watch your jewels."

The downward turn of his mouth had her clutching her sides while she urged herself not to laugh too loudly.

The guy was too easy. She was definitely going to miss pissing him off.

* * *

The two Saiyans waited around the corner, observing the door that held the future promise of Crest behind its weighty panel.

_Any second now…_

It had been right five minutes since they'd left the portal room, and it was only a matter of time before-

_**BOOM** _

There it was.

Bulla and Turles watched as teams of guards raced towards the explosion, sirens beginning to blare while amber lights flickered on and off throughout the hallway.

"Breach in the Western quarter," a voice repeated monotonously while the two strolled towards the holding cell.

After Turles undid the locking mechanism, Bulla rushed in, throwing her arms around as many little warriors as she could. "I'm sorry we took so long," she croaked, feeling multiple diminutive bodies surround her, warm pudgy skin squashing against her cheeks. Brushing one boy's fringe out of his eyes, she asked, "Is everyone okay? Did anyone hurt you?"

"A little," one of the older ones declared. "But we've gotten worse during training." Bulla let out a hefty sigh at the confirmation but had to be quick, there was no time to check each one individually.

"Do you guys want to play a game?" the heiress posed, forcing a smile as she looked across their wary faces. The clamour from outside was still present - yet more explosions and alarms, each successfully drowning out most of the distant yelling - but she noticed a few of them perk up at the suggestion, tails beginning to uncoil from their waists.

"Bulla," Turles warned, remaining near the doorway and keeping watch while she readied the youngsters.

"It goes like this," she whispered, keeping her face low and in line with theirs. "When I do this." She showed both palms. "We stay  _super_ quiet, okay? Quieter than bunnies. Do that until my next signal." Bulla waved her hands side-to-side. "This means we all make as much noise as we can. Got it? Let's do a practice run." She rose to her full height and looked behind her. "Anyone there, Turles?"

"It's clear, let's move."

She presented her palms and each one pursed their lips, eager and bright-eyed while they waited for her next action. When she shook her hands and lolled her head childishly, a torrent of tiny voices screamed back at her. Some bounced on the spot, others stomped their feet, all their nervous energy from before rapidly dissolving.

"Great job!" she praised, relieved to see how quickly they could be distracted from the earlier terror, and lifted her hands once more to signal it was time for the quiet game. "Turles, come here."

With a final glance to the hallway, he complied, stepping further inside and glossing over some of the awestruck faces before looking at the heiress.

"You've got more surface area for me to pile them onto," she explained, reaching for the first toddler and placing her on the General's shoulders. "So stand still and don't let any of them fall."

"Squeeze at tightly as you can," she instructed to the little one, making a fist to demonstrate. Turles winced as the girl clenched at his roots, but made no verbal complaint while Bulla went for the next one.

Systematically, the heiress carefully arranged as many Saiyan children atop Turles' upper half as she could, forcing herself to bite the inside of her cheek to avoid the gleeful smile that was begging to be set free. If she had a camera with her right now, she could cherish this moment forever.

He was adorned with babies from head to hip. Each arm carried two while one sat on each shoulder, clutching his hair for stability. A final tyke rested on his head.

"Last one." Bulla lowered to her haunches, allowing one of the older kids to hop onto her back and wrap his arms around her neck before she rose once again. Two held her hands, one each side, with both hugging a wiggly infant as firmly as their little arms could allow.

"Remember, everyone," Bulla spoke brightly. "We don't make a sound until I give the signal."

They headed for the door, the heiress taking extra care to ensure the halls were empty before stepping out.

Thankfully, Cinna's diversion plan seemed to work. There wasn't a soul to be found on their way back to the portal room, and since the Commander was intentionally blasting cameras on the opposite end of the ship, any potential surveillance operators were tricked into maintaining their attention, and thus sending backup, elsewhere.

"Hit that button," she told the girl holding her left hand once they reached their temporary safehouse. The door whizzed open, revealing an expectedly empty room on the other side of it.

"Okay, everyone," Bulla exhaled as she walked towards the lever, Saiyan brood still in tow. "Almost time-"

" **In here!"**

Bulla spun with a start when Goten crashed through the door, her eyes immediately falling to an unconscious Gine slumped in his arms. He had blood seeping from his hairline and past his temple while his face dripped with sweat.

"Bulla, open the portal!" he called, barreling in. "We don't have much time."

"She needs help, General," Caya huffed, pressing her hand to her chest as she attempted to catch her breath. Bulla could see from the heaviness of her lids and the sprawling capillaries streaking across her eyes, that the Captain was still woozy from earlier and fighting to maintain full consciousness.

Turles immediately darted out of the room, a series of yells from Sibe's soldiers carrying down the hallway soon after.

"Go, go, go!" Goten shouted to those behind him once Bulla successfully had the portal running. "Get out of here while you still have the chance." He passed his unconscious grandmother to a Saiyan Bulla vaguely recognised from Bardock's ship. "Lead everyone to our starting post in the forest," Goten told her, breathing laborious. "Cinna says it's one of the least exposed spots nearby. Make sure it's secure it so we can start sending the kids through."

The ship lurched and a deep groan sounded from the outside hallway. The rest paid no heed, though Bulla couldn't help but wonder how much time they all had before the vessel started falling apart.

One after the other, Bulla watched as Saiyans in various states of consciousness leapt through the ethereal gateway. Many were still knocked out and being hauled across while draped over other soldiers' shoulders.

She was so caught up in the frenzy, she'd nearly forgotten about her own charge. Some of the older kids were observing the frantic adults cautiously, and she could see nervous thoughts racing behind their wide eyes.

_Oh!_

"Hey, everyone," Bulla chirped, clapping her palms together and regaining their attention while Goten ushered the last of the captured older Saiyans through. The heiress swayed her hands side-to-side, pushing to keep her demeanour cheerful, as though this were all part of the game.

The children came to life once again, squealing their little lungs out, each one wearing a glistening smile. She couldn't help but gleam back, a faint tug pulling in her chest.

"Who's ready to go home?" she asked once the shrieking began to die down, instantly met with a sea of hands and me-me-mes. She picked up one of the youngest and passed him to Goten, who was now half inside the ship and halfway through the portal, arms outstretched and ready.

He ducked through once he had the first infant in his arms, disappearing for a handful of seconds while Bulla readied the next one.

Ensuring she kept a foot on the portal pedal at all times, Goten soon returned and the two repeated the process while some of the older children helped herd the others closer to the pick-up zone.

The ship jerked once more, thrusting Bulla off balance and sending her to the floor. The portal blipped away a mere fraction of a second after connection with the pedal was lost, while screws and bolts rained from above, clattering to the ground around her.

"Come on," she groaned, pushing into her palms and planting her foot. Chunks of interior panelling were starting to slip out of place, landing with a crash when they sank from the ceiling.

Bulla could sense Turles and Cinna slowly making their way back, unable to imagine what was taking them so long - the guards were no stronger than a standard Saiyan foot soldier, and from what she could tell, Turles seemed to be the one doing all the leg work.

Bulla dragged herself back to the portal while the ship tilted dangerously, slapping her hand to the button as soon as she reached it.

"What happened?" Goten jumped through, eyes taking in the rest of the room.

"The ship's starting to fall apart," Bulla coughed, passing him the next two toddlers. "We have to hurry. Something could damage this thing any second now and there's no guarantee we can find ourselves another if that happens."

He slipped away again, going out of sight for a dozen seconds before reappearing once more. Leading the last remaining child forward, Bulla whispered words of encouragement to take Goten's hand and follow him somewhere less noisy the precise moment a beam fell out of its hold and landed directly in front of them, gouging out a piece of the floor as though it were ice cream.

"Bulla, you come too." Goten waved her over while holding one palm to the young girl's shoulder. "This is the last of them, you don't need to stay behind anymore."

Instinctively, Bulla turned to the dilapidated passageway, willing two stubborn Saiyans to appear. "But the others..." she protested softly.

"It's fine. They're on their way," he placated, making more insistent gestures. "Let's  _go_."

She could hear vague commotion in the hallway, Turles' shouting amongst it, and hesitated.

A violent crash was soon heard as Turles barrelled through the already crumbling wall, arms crossed over his face _._

"What are you still doing here?" he belted when he lowered his hands and met the heiress' gaze, rubble and dust dotted all through his hair.

Cinna appeared soon after, skidding to a stop at the improvised hole while she maintained her attention on something further down the passage. Her eyes were bloodshot while crimson dripped down her mouth and onto her soiled boot, the skin on her face a sickly pale while she failed to spare even a glance the heiress' direction.

"Leave," the commander ordered quietly.

All Bulla managed out in response was, "But-"

"Bulla." Goten extended a hand towards her, halfway through the portal with clear pleading in his eyes, but she didn't make any move to take it.

"Did you hear her?" Turles berated, throwing Bulla a harsh glare. "Get out of here!"

Sirens were still blaring, lights were still strobing, and the continuous, increasingly chaotic damage surrounding her was downright deafening.

"Come with us!" Bulla countered. "The four of us are the last ones left. We can make it back to Crest, together!"

"Not this time," Cinna uttered, wiping the back of her hand over her lips as she kept her eyes ahead.

"What do you mean?" Bulla's chest was beginning to tighten, a sickening twist growing in the base of her stomach while she stared at the two pure-blooded Saiyans in front of her.

"Bulla, come on!" Goten called out behind her, offering his arm in desperation. "Don't do this. Please."

" **Turles, now!"** Cinna roared, a combination of blood and saliva sputtering out of her mouth as she released something from her grip, tossing it to him, and launched forward.

Suddenly, Bulla couldn't breathe.

Desperately, she gasped for air, palms to her chest as she realised she'd just been winded.

As she sucked in one pained inhale after the other, Bulla noted Turles' shoulder buried in her stomach while he rammed her backwards. The heiress reached out her hands and heard her own voice calling out as though it were someone else's.  _"No!"_  she cried, eyes locked on the broken corridor.

Cinna sailed backwards, slamming into the wall at the end of the hallway and crumpling to the floor.

Bulla registered another body behind her, colliding with her back as she was forced through the portal, foot now completely off the pedal. The sinking feeling deepened as she accepted what that simple fact meant.

The last split second on Sibe's ship showed the man himself, hovering outside the Turles-sized hole in the portal room wall with a look of complete, psychopathic rage. Before she knew it, the image disappeared, snipping off a piece of Turles' cape in the process while the General wrapped an arm around her middle and drove her through until she felt the telling dampness of dead leaves under her spine and morning sunlight on her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can see by the chapter title, this is one chapter split into two. Originally, I was planning on releasing it as one update, but time has been getting away from me in the real world and I feel already I've let things go too long. I hope part one has been well met at the very least, and you're still enjoying this tale. Part two is halfway complete as of posting this, so ideally you won't have to wait too long to be relieved of the unintentional cliffhanger.
> 
> Shoutout to those of you who reached out in my absence, that was really very sweet of you.
> 
> Thank you, as always, to everyone who continues to make time for Collide, reading, reviewing and generally going along with my yarns 😘


	30. Heroine Pt II

Bulla gasped as an urgent breath drew in, fingers digging in the mulch beside her while silky tears streamed down the sides of her face. " _No,_ " she choked, squeezing away the trickling sting and silently willing time to reverse.

Her mind was so numb, she hadn't even noticed the pressing weight on top of her until it withdrew, the crunch of dead leaves crackling in her ears while he shifted.

"Get up," Turles ordered, unsympathetic as he hooked a hand under her armpit and hauled her to her feet.

Her throat cinched while she stumbled to rise, eyes still welling as she stared at the empty space where a shimmering portal floated mere moments before. " _We just left her…_ " Bulla uttered, entirely vacant.

The tightening of his grip around her arm reeled her back to the present, and she wrenched out of his hold. "Why did you do that?" Her face crumpled as the reality continued to sink _._ "How could you do that to one of your own?" Bulla banged a fist against his armour, the clasps at his cape fixings rattling while loose blue locks swung forward. "She saved us." Another clenched fist pounded. "And we just left her to die."

"Bulla, stop." Goten gently reached for her elbow, interrupting her idle assault on the General while Turles simply stared down at her, taking each of her hits without so much as an attempt at self-defence.

Chest burning, she ground her teeth, her entire body threatening to tear in two. "She needed us and we abandoned her," her voice cracked as she slipped an arm out of Goten's grasp and landed another sluggish punch on Turles' plating, letting it drag down the smooth polymer as she dropped her forehead to his sternum.

"She needed us to  _leave_ ," Turles spoke, finally responding to her outcry. "One of us had to stay behind. It was always going to end this way."

Bulla recoiled at the comment, "You two planned this?" expression twisting while she glared back at the stolid warrior. "You  _planned_  on leaving her behind?"

Turles own expression slipped for a fraction of a second and Bulla's eyes narrowed, temper stirring.

"It was supposed to be me," he muttered, a single soiled fist coiling at his side while he held her now wavering gaze.

Bulla's legs nearly gave out. Once more, her breath left her without warning as the sensation of a square gut-punch returned.

Turles continued to bore into her, frigid as the day she met him. "Would that have made you happier?"

Her jaw slackened, mouth falling open while nothing but illegible croaks floated out of her throat. As she shrank away from him, receding into the man behind her, Goten loosened his grip.

" _Why?_ " Aqua-toned brows pulled together while a barely audible murmur tumbled out. "Why would you save me instead of her?"

He said nothing, and didn't seem inclined to give her an answer, but Bulla had spent enough hours in his company to pick up the idiosyncrasies: The twitch of his cheek, the clouded swirl behind tumultuous black orbs, and the quick, momentary snap of attention towards the older hybrid.

He was keeping something from her.

That in itself was hardly new, but this wasn't like before. This time, Bulla bristled, the look in his eyes was decidedly novel.

She turned too, hoping to gain insight from her fellow halfling, but all he did was keep his own eyes trained on the pure-blooded Saiyan.

The ground quaked beneath her boots suddenly, and a deep rumble rolled through the forest. Everyone present sent their gaze eastward over the tops of the tallest trees as dozens of dark eyes watched, transfixed, while a colossal metallic beast stomped steadily through the distant landscape.

"It's still going," Turles mumbled, maintaining his attention on the titan before humorlessly looking back to the heiress. "Lay into me all you want later. For now, we still have work to do." Without so much as a, 'let's go', he shot off, aiming straight for the arid border.

Bulla took a moment to look over the rescued hostages, quietly noting that Goten was heading towards them, assisting as they checked each other for injuries while a handful attempted to wake the unconscious.

He kneeled into the dirt and held a light hand to Gine's cheek, hovering over her and speaking softly.

"She'll be okay," Bulla called out, catching his attention and causing a few of the others to look her way while she made her way over to join them. "It's the sedative." She kneeled too, pressing the back of her fingers to Gine's neck before transferring her gaze to the older halfling. As he watched his grandmother, lips downturned and eyebrows pinching together, Bulla considered asking what happened earlier - why he came back in such a state, why Cinna needed help before their escape, what he knew about Turles' last-second decision - but it all seemed pointless now.

"She'll wake up soon." Bulla leaned into her knuckles, pushing herself back up and glossing over the others. They had a few experienced fighters with them this time around, she filed. That would have to do.

She couldn't keep spending her efforts as protector, she'd decided; she'd played the defensive game long enough. It was time for Bulla to bring her all.

* * *

"Bulla!" The heartening ring of her best friend's voice hit her ears as Pan split off from the rest of the cluster.

Immediately on descending on the troupe, the heiress was met with long, powerful arms as Son Pan threw herself at the youngest hybrid, her fingers digging into the spaces between Bulla's ribs. Bulla embraced her in turn, drawing in the fruity essence of Pan's earth-made shampoo and immediately finding herself transported to their shared apartment: blaring music beating through flimsy walls on a Saturday night, the rhythmic thumps drowning out raucous feminine laughter and clumsy, drunken stumbling into palatial bedrooms. It was another life; one she now felt entirely disconnected from.

While her nose remained buried in Pan's dust-riddled hair, she sensed the one she'd quietly been seeking since arriving back on Crest, and shaky aquamarine orbs inadvertently landed on another's, harsh, black and hypnotically deep.

Raditz stood no more than fifteen metres from her, surrounded by gallant soldiers. Beaten as they were, not one appeared reluctant or ready to fold.

 _So much like daddy,_ she thought, remorseful.  _And Goku. It's almost cruel that neither of them really got the chance to grow up with their own kind_

Though entrenched in conversation with his father - presumably formulating a plan of sorts to deal with the hunkering mountain of steel traipsing through their wilderness - Raditz' eyes found hers, and for a fraction of a second, she thought she saw him soften.

"What happened to you?!" Pan drew back, both hands placed firmly on each of Bulla's shoulders. The quarterling's face was caked with dirt, but her eyes remained bright and alert, a mere hint at the infamous, boundless energy that lurked within. Pan tugged at the frayed edges of Bulla's skinsuit, now so tattered it barely covered her lower ribs. "Where's the rest of your armour?"

Still battling to stay fully present, Bulla could barely keep up with their conversation, though her gaze insisted on falling to the men behind them.

Turles had joined the impromptu forum and Raditz was listening with folded arms, nodding along slowly while his right hand relayed his debrief.

 _Still in Kaiser mode._ Bulla bit down on the inside of her lip, forcing away the creeping disappointment.  _Doesn't even take a break to say, 'Hello' or 'Glad to see you're alive.'_

Turles twisted around, pointing a finger to the heiress and prompting Bardock and said Kaiser to shift their attention. Raditz looked at her then, properly, sharp eyes falling to her stomach while his brows pulled together in clear displeasure.

"Bulla?"

"Sorry, what?" Bulla looked back and shook her head, attempting to centre herself.

"I said I can sense Goten's on his way." Pan lifted her focus to the morning sky above. "Where's Cinna? She should be here while the others formulate the next step."

Immediately, Bulla choked, already strained orbs prickling instantly while she took in the girl in front of her. The quarterling was optimistic as ever as she watched her uncle land on the burnt sand next to them, now damp and packed from the cool air of the night before.

"Welcome back." Pan gave a hearty grin, greeting him with the same warm embrace she'd offered the heiress. "Nice bloodstain."

Goten brought his forefingers to his temple while his free hand came to rest at the base of Bulla's back. "Thanks. I'm going for that rugged look." Numb as she was, Bulla couldn't ignore the flash that passed at the simple sensation of his hand grazing against the exposed skin. "I hear it's what all the girls are into these days. What did I miss?"

"Plenty," Pan exhaled, running grimy fingers through her shoulder-length bob. "Trunks and his group are keeping the toaster busy while the others restrategise. It's not as nimble as the smaller mechs, but you have to watch yourself with those beams."

"Has it been going this whole time?"

"No, thank God-"

Bulla felt herself zoning out again, the Sons' reunion chatter fading into the background while her eyes drifted along of their own accord. Upswept sand swirled near their feet, skating along the ground and beating at the gold-tipped boots of the man she repeatedly found herself observing. Though she'd caught his gaze every few minutes, he persisted in finalising his plans with the others.

Trailing the creases along his face, she attempted to scrutinise the Kaiser with fresher, less partial eyes. Goddamn Cinna and her stupid, penetrating questions, forcing her to contemplate things she'd rather leave unvisited.

The group of Saiyan leaders was starting to disperse, along with the rest of their soldiers, dust kicking up as feet shuffled and bodies levitated.

Before leaving, Raditz took an indulgent glance, finally ready to acknowledge her presence and offer a nod, followed by the faintest of lip curls.

She returned the gesture, though struggled to mirror his smile.

_Please don't die._

* * *

"I know this is going to sound ridiculous given everything that's happened." Goten slid his hand up her back and over to her elbow, relief unending at seeing her in front of him in one piece, blood still flowing and heart still beating. The others were readying themselves for the next assault, leaving Bulla and Goten the last two on the ground. They would be up there soon enough, he knew, but there was no telling whether they'd get a moment to themselves again after this. Ever. "But how are you?"

She was staring at the ground, absent as she was once they'd escaped the ship, and his heart broke. A melancholic Bulla was so off-kilter. He ached seeing her this listless and despised being so powerless to fixing everything that had gone so horribly wrong for her.

Goten heard what he thought to be a dry sob, but soon realised she wore an empty smile.

"I don't know when last someone's asked me that," she chuckled colourlessly. "When last I've even asked myself."

Goten pulled her to him, her sullen cheek squishing against his shoulder while heavy lashes brushed lazily over smooth nylon.

Everything about her appeared entirely exhausted, as though she'd been carrying an unrelenting weight for centuries and her body was finally ready to collapse. He listened to her breath cycle against his armour, exhales gradually growing slower and longer, and rested his chin atop her head. Gliding his fingers over the back of her skull, he wrapped an arm around her back, enveloping the heiress in the quiet hopes of bringing reprieve, comfort,  _anything_  that could lighten her burden, if only for a moment.

She sighed into his collar while he dragged ragged fingers over the back of her head, satin strands catching occasionally on abraded skin.

When he pulled away, bringing both hands either side of her face, he caught the slump of her shoulders and ran a thumb over the deep shadows looming under hollow aquamarine orbs.

_She's so spent._

"Everyone's on their last leg," Goten spoke, watching her carefully. "If we don't get it right after this…"

"I know," Bulla uttered in reply.

_We don't get another chance._

Beneath her lashes, Goten spied a freckled nose, pointy in a way that seemed strangely familiar.  _It's Vegeta's,_ he thought amusedly, skimming his finger over the end. How had it missed his notice all these years how much of her father shone through in more than just a haughty front, or cutting quips about the various members of his family?

Goten's thumb drifted down, tracing over a wide cheekbone while he pondered how unexpectedly severe she appeared without the girlish gleam. Unthinkingly, he brushed over the corner of her mouth, barely cognizant that he'd been silently begging her to smile, a genuine one, just once, before they left for the final battle.

She lifted disarmingly large eyes at the contact, so clear and magnetic, and Goten faltered.

Was it him, or her that started narrowing the distance between their faces first?

When the tips of their noses grazed, he reminded himself that these sorts of questions didn't really matter, because history suggested this always ended the same way.

 _"Bulla,"_ he whispered, reluctantly tearing his gaze off her mouth in preparation of his plea. Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but he could have sworn he saw a semblance of a spark returning. " _Don't pull away this time."_

And she didn't.

Despite her state, her lips against his own were no less heavenly than the first time he'd ever experienced them. So full, so plush. So utterly sublime.

His free hand pressed to the centre of her back, drawing her close while her own hands crushed against his armour. Her touch was as light as the peck of a butterfly, a whisper against his chest plate that he so longed to feel against bare skin.

Goten caressed the skin at her jaw, a second wind stirring within while his hand travelled towards her neck, coming to rest at her nape. Circling his fingers in fine blue locks, Goten lightly tugged, persuading her face even nearer.

Easily, he could have mistaken this for another dream, a cruel trick of his mind taunting him over what had always been painfully narrowly out of reach.

 _I've waited so long,_ his mind moaned while ethereal hands laced up his shoulders, interlocking behind his neck. Hot blood coursed, rushing north until his ears seared, and south until his suit strained.

Their deepening kiss set his handle on reality slipping, mental fetters loosening one-by-one while euphoria surged through dilating veins. Every mental torment, every quiet fear, every nagging doubt: thoroughly and systematically stamped out while her pulse beat under his fingertips and modest tongue danced delicately with his own.

The feel of Bulla in his arms,  _finally,_  had him so intoxicated, Goten almost missed the fact that something was... off. As absurd as it was that this had happened enough times for him to have a dataset, kissing Bulla Briefs was different this time around.

There was a quiet hunger she'd brought before, he mulled. An eagerness. And though she tended to be the one to end things first, he couldn't help but pick up a sense of begrudging retreat each time. It was as though she'd wanted more, yearned for it even, but wasn't allowing herself to take it.

Today, however, that hunger was nowhere. What she brought instead was a tenderness he hadn't felt previously, a careful savouring. A sense of finality.

Goten's eyes shot open when the thought landed, his consciousness barrelling back to Crest as though secured to a plummeting anchor, and this time, he was the one to pull away.

"Bulla?" His eyes never left the CC heiress, finger trailing over her rosy cheek. She was back to looking at the ground, lost in her own thoughts and distant once more, forcing him to speculate yet again what, or  _who_ , else was occupying her mind.

Before his imagination had a chance to torture him with unsavoury images of pureblooded Saiyans lusting over earth-born princesses, he caught the turn of her lips. Slowly, she looked back at him with a growing, albeit fragile, smile. Colour was gradually returning to her face and she appeared more like the Bulla Briefs he'd grown so fond of.

Her eyes, however, spoke differently. They were glassed over and failing to follow the upward curve of her mouth, acting like a veil to whatever lurked beneath.

 _I know you feel something for me, Bulla,_ he urged, fingers still clutching the side of her face, though for each second he looked at her, his certainty grew rockier.  _It means something to you when I kiss you... doesn't it?_

_Why can't you just let yourself go?_

Her gaze was on the sky now, a collection of battle-hardened Saiyans in particular, and he felt his heart break all over again.

_Because you feel something for him too._

* * *

"Took you long enough," Pan blurted, hovering above the rocky pass while fierce Crest winds sent clumps of black hair skating across her face.

"Needed a moment," Bulla exhaled, quietly pleased at her outward stability. "Do you mind filling me in on the major points?"

"Trunks is on his way back," Pan called over howling gusts. "They've decided to let the four of us fight together."

"The four of us?" Bulla tucked a few wayward strands behind her ear.

"You, me, Trunks and Goten," she clarified. "They said something about launching a coordinated attack."

Bulla nodded, following along so far. "How do we know when to do that?"

"I don't know yet," Pan answered, squinting into the softening breeze. "I'm guessing they'll tell us soon enough." She paused then, gingerly looking to the younger hybrid, features easing. "Do you think you're up to it?" the quarterling asked earnestly. "I know we all have to put on a tough face for these guys, but you'll tell me if you're drowning, right, B?"

She nodded again. "I'm good. I've been saving myself for this," Bulla assured, taking another breath.

"That's my girl," Pan gleamed, her positivity contagious. "Once this is over, we're swapping notes, okay? You tell me everything that happened since you left for the battle school, and I'll fill you in on what went down since nightfall."

"Deal," Bulla breathed, twisting when she sensed her brother's approach.

 _Look at this guy,_ she almost laughed to herself once he came to a stop. He barely had a scratch on him, appearing steady and poised as ever, now even more impressive with his showy navy cape.

"Bulla." Trunks pulled her in, wrapping a firm arm around her back while he leaned his mouth to her forehead. His ki was enormous, she noted with surprise, absolutely ablaze as he held her to him. She couldn't be sure he'd ever emitted so much power, at least not around her, and he wasn't even in the midst of battle right now.

 _He's come alive._ She nestled further into him, burying her nose into his shoulder and relishing the familiar scent and pacifying presence.

"You're okay," he murmured into her hair, planting a kiss on her temple before giving another squeeze.

" _All thanks to Cinna_ ," she replied quietly, swallowing against the growing lump in her throat.

"I heard what happened." He drew back, looking her in the eye as he gripped both of her arms. "Don't underestimate her, alright? She's sharp, and she's tough. Someone as crafty as her doesn't go down in a hurry."

Bulla shook her head. "You didn't see-"

"You didn't see either," Trunks quickly cut in. "From what I hear, she was still going when you left so don't dwell on the rest. Just focus on your part like she's focusing on hers."

He flicked his eyes to the quarterling before returning them to his sister, and that simple move was telling enough: Don't let Pan know. At least not yet.

Operating without scouters meant they were forced to communicate the old-fashioned way, so the three hybrids floated to a nearby cliff, deducing they may as well make themselves comfortable while they awaited further instruction.

"How do we destroy this thing if it keeps repairing itself?" Bulla asked out loud, considering some of the information she'd gleaned from Pan and Goten's earlier conversation. "It sounds like it's immortal as Sibe himself."

"It could be," Trunks offered, glancing over while she sat perched on her little rock. "Or we just haven't figured out its weakness yet. Same goes for Sibe."

 _Yep, you're Vegeta's son,_ she mused somewhat pridefully.  _'No one is unbeatable against a Saiyan elite.' Right?_

All three turned when they registered another Saiyan heading their way, white cape flapping behind him while he eased into his descent.

"Auber," Bulla greeted plainly, resisting the reflexive ire that sprouted each time she saw his stupid, smug face.

On landing, he offered a curt nod to all. "Where's the other one?" the Captain asked, chest puffed out while he strutted cockily along the platform.

"On his way." The heiress rose from her rock, crossing her arms and rooting her feet when he paused at her front. "What can we do for you, my lovely Captain?"

He smirked at the obvious falseness before answering. "Just popping in to say hello." He lifted an arm, as though to clap her on the shoulder, but hesitated when she eyed the wayward appendage in warning. "And welcome back." Auber showed both palms in clear appeasement. "I also bring a message."

"From who?" Pan tilted her head.

"General Turles."

"We're listening." Trunks own arms were folded as he regarded the opportunistic Captain.

"He says to wait for a signal, and not to act until you hear direct word from him or the Kaiser." Auber returned his attention to Bulla. "He also told me to make sure I was looking directly at  _you_  when I said this."

She glanced away with a scoff and exasperated eye roll. "Of course he did," she grumbled. "So what's the signal?"

"He says he'll figure that out when the time comes."

_Helpful._

"You get the rules?" Auber raised both eyebrows, checking each one's expression for confirmation. "It's simple enough so sit tight, pretty hybrids," he spoke gruffly. "And don't join in until instructed otherwise."

"Sounds riveting," Pan sulked, slumping against the rock face behind her.

Auber stepped closer to the heiress, dropping his voice as he did so, "I've also been told give you this," and slid his hand into his breast.

Blue brows pulled together as he presented something short and cylindrical in the palm of his hand. "What's-" she cut herself off. " _Where did you get this_?"

She stared in shock at the classic double C logo that served as a constant feature since her earliest memories.

"You recognise it then?" Auber questioned, his own eyebrow quirked in intrigue.

"This is my family's company!" Bulla hissed, swiping it from his hand and swelling at the trip-like experience of her two worlds colliding so unexpectedly. She grasped the capsule between her fingertips, holding it to the sky to analyse it more carefully.

"General Turles suspected you'd know your way around it better than he would."

"I don't understand," she murmured, rotating it slowly before the rising sun. "How did he get his hands on one of these?"

"He must have gotten it from Cinna," Trunks put forward, stepping over to join them while Pan watched quizzically. "This is the one I gave her myself." Bulla observed her brother with her own look of confusion. "I had a couple on me when they took me in," he explained. "She was fascinated by the technology, so I told her she could have it."

"What's inside?" Bulla wondered out loud. "Why does he think I should hold it?"

"Maybe he thinks you're more likely to survive," Pan suggested, immediately causing the heiress to shoot her a look. "After all, he's probably about to get really close and personal with that Queen-Bee mech, and has given strict orders for you not to follow after him."

Bulla clenched her fist with the diminutive white cap inside of it, imploring the aforementioned General not to give his earlier admission a second attempt, and squeezed a little harder.

"Here it comes," her brother announced, turning back around. Sure enough, Trunks was right. The oversized Transformer was currently sweeping their direction, foreboding red eyes still illuminated as its mechanical joints groaned and creaked in warning of its arrival.

"And that's my cue to get out of here." Auber rolled back to face the heiress. "Remember," he patted her cheek, earning himself a sneer, followed by a disdainful swat. "Wait for a signal. And  _don't_  interfere."

"Yeah, yeah," Bulla groaned, shooing him away. "We get it."

As Auber jetted off, Goten approached from the opposite direction.

"How's Gine?" Bulla asked as soon as he landed, white energy whipping away while he powered down and headed for her brother.

The two older hybrids exchanged a familial hug. "She's awake now," Goten spoke through Trunks' back clap. "Bardock turned up and suggested everyone move west, so we took a moment to help them get to safer ground."

"Was she okay?" Pan pushed off her chosen wall, stepping towards her uncle with genuine worry. "Did she seem lucid?"

Goten spared a brief glance to the heiress before returning to his niece. "Uh, yeah," he answered, evidently distracted. "Give her a few days and I think she'll be fine."

The subsequent pause in conversation left Bulla wondering if everyone else was thinking the same thing she was right now.  _Will we even have a few days after this?_

Movement in their periphery caught the quartet's attention, and each one twisted with intrigue as three discrete groups of allies floated directly in front of their mammoth foe. Bulla spotted Bardock first, the ever familiar hairstyle and distinct green cape swaying stoically behind him.

The sounding grind from the robot's swivelling head sent shivers down her spine while it honed in on the confronting Saiyan, but Bardock remained unperturbed.

Without warning, a train-length arm swooped out, aiming for the ex-Kaiser, and Bardock leapt, dodging the swipe and strafing in time to avoid the ensuing laser strike.

While Bulla observed the older Saiyan's acrobatics, the two remaining groups of fighters positioned themselves further down the colossus' body, lining up with its legs.

Turles lead those on the left while Raditz commanded the right, globes of light growing within each soldier's hands and expanding to the size of beach balls until Raditz gave the word and both groups released simultaneous beams.

Bulla squinted as dense streams of energy pooled at each of its knees, bright light reflecting off glimmering steel.

"They're melting it!" Pan exclaimed, arm extended as she pointed enthusiastically to the fray.

Bulla saw the beast hitch before slipping to the ground, landing first on one split knee, and then the other.

_No way._

"Has this happened before?" she asked the quarterling, daring to feel optimistic and gasping when the murmured,  _No,_  exited her brother's mouth.

The titan slammed a hand into the earth, narrowly missing a still-limber Bardock and triggering a planet-shaking quake in the process. Bulla gripped the boulder next to her while Pan reached for her rock face and Trunks lowered into braced legs, keeping his gaze firmly trained. She could see him muttering to himself, cheeks tense while he engaged fully in the scene ahead.

Bulla held her breath, excitement stalking ever higher as whispers of victory pulled at mental threads. Raditz issued another order and the twin beams at the robot's legs doubled in diameter in an instant.  _Yes!_

"It's not working," Trunks muttered, a single vein pulsing in his forearm when he tightened his fist.

"What do you mean it's not working?" Pan flared, snapping her head to the eldest hybrid as though personally insulted by the proclamation. "They've got it on the ground!"

"It's still putting itself back together." His teeth ground and the muscles at the base of his jaw twitched, just like Bulla had seen her father's do so many times before. She was still watching her brother when she saw shifting behind him - Goten was edging towards the end of the platform.

Bulla turned back the battle, stomach sinking once she realised what had caught his attention so suddenly. "Oh God."

The blood-curdling cries reached all the way to their cliff as Bardock called out in torment, shoulders crunching together while metallic fingers contracted around his back. Each time his gold aura pulsed, it was followed by a ripple of electricity along his adversary's arm and a noticeable recession in his ki.

"Don't," she heard Trunks utter.  _Order._ He had his arm out past Goten's chest, and she could tell by the bend in his knees he was primed to react if Goten made any attempt to ignore him.

"Why aren't they helping him?!" Pan demanded, throwing out both arms in frustration while Turles and Raditz continued their concentrated assault.

"What are they supposed to do?" Bulla attempted, causing both Sons to cast her looks of deep laceration. "They can't just rip off its arms like we did with those smaller ones," she persisted. "The best thing they can do right now is beat that thing altogether, and that's what they're already trying to do."

"They can't beat it like this." Trunks shook his head. "They're wasting what's left of their energy."

"He's getting tired," Goten spoke for the first time since the new wave started, "We have to do something," and looked to the elder hybrid, austere. "It'll kill him."

Bulla could see Bardock's transformation beginning to slip, instances on black flickering every few seconds, and knew Goten was nothing more than moments away from abandoning his post. She had to ask herself now, while she had a chance to contemplate it, would she help him when that moment came?

**"Greetings, friends."**

All rational thought exited Bulla's brain as she froze on the spot, exchanging a horror-filled glance with Goten while Trunks' eyes tapered into narrow slits.

"Is that him?" her brother asked.

The behemoth ceased its torture while pale light exuded from each of its now white orbs and a multi-storey projection filled the sky.

**"I trust you'll all have heard by now, though it's no matter if you haven't."**

The camera zoomed out while his amplified voice continued to transmit. Between the slender fingers of his ghostly hand was the pointed chin of Bulla's one-time cellmate and favourite lady General. She couldn't even tell whether the face he was holding was still alive, it was so void of colour.

**"I've had enough of your kind."**

The unexpected video feed was enough to interrupt the present assault, all three groups of attackers pausing to watch his broadcast.

**"And after all the chaos you've just caused-"**

He squeezed the hollows of Cinna's cheeks until they sunk unsettlingly deep into sallow flesh.

"- **I thought it only fair that I repay you with a front-row seat. My dear Cinna."**  He looked down at the lone Saiyan, adorned with the most insincere of barren smiles.  **"Do you have any words for your brethren before you all become cosmic dust?"**

Sibe turned to the console at his right and began to tap until the image on the projection adjusted, no longer showing defunct panel walls and broken doorways as a backdrop.

Bulla heard the sudden inhale of the girl next to her at the same time a set of feminine fingernails dug into tender flesh at her arm.

" _Please, no,_ " Pan whispered, face contorting as her mouth crumpled in anguish. Sibe had gone from the safety of his hidden ship, to the clear skies of Crest, right in front of them. Instead of pinching Cinna's chin, he was now clutching her throat, wiry fingers holding her in place while limbs dangled freely. The twist in her arm and bend of her right leg were entirely unnatural and Bulla immediately tore away, covering her mouth as she saved herself the ordeal of seeing an esteemed ally in such a state. She reached for the older hybrid's hand, slipping her fingers between the grooves, and clenched.

 **"No send off?"** he taunted, smirking at the broken Commander. " **I suppose there's nothing left to say."**

Sibe cocked his head, interested suddenly, and lowered his head to her mouth.  **"What was that?"** He pulled back with a baffled frown. Parched lips parted once more as Cinna croaked out her warbled message.

 **"You did it?"** he repeated back to her, perplexed. " **Did what?"**

As Bulla juggled the comment, confused as to why Cinna would spend precious last breaths saying something so pointless, she spotted Raditz and Turles draw their gazes away from the derisive overlord and towards each other, sharing a look of bewilderment before simultaneously turning to face the heiress.

_Why are they staring at me?_

It took a moment before realisation struck.

_That's it!_

She brought her fingers to her side, keeping them curled while energy swelled between them. "That's the signal!"

Bulla wasted no time firing her blast, a gold wave rushing outward as ki surged all through her extremities. Strikes of static electricity snapped past her vision, her own power an inferno in her ears while she unleashed her last untapped reserve.

A stream of violet struck the diminutive tyrant with enough force to catch him unaware and interrupt his grip on the General, sending him hurtling backwards and right into the beast of his own making.

A second beam appeared as Bulla floated above her rock, merging with her own at Sibe's stomach while she drove him deeper into his behemoth's chest. In the back of her mind, she registered her brother's ki to her left, joining her in taking this unscrupulous foe head-on with their father's signature attack.

Pan and Goten were only split seconds behind, each ascending hastily before launching a synchronous amber wave.

**"What're you-"**

"Give everything!" Trunks commanded, suppressing Sibe's protests while multicoloured lights bounced erratically off four sets of teal irises.

The heiress dipped further into her reservoir, feverish as she watched the steady dismantling of both immortal beings while the larger disintegrated from the inside out. She had yet to see any signs of reconstruction as the titan's core disappeared inch-by-inch. Meanwhile, the others had resumed their earlier task, targeting the remaining limbs with newfound fervour and freedom from interruption.

"It's working!" Pan cried, energy wave expanding the more bolstered she grew. "Why is it working?!"

Sweat was evaporating off Trunk's temple before it even had a chance to drip. "Cinna must have figured something out," he groaned out. "She sabotaged him somehow."

' _One of us had to stay behind.'_ Bulla considered Turles' earlier words, realising now there was more to their story.  _Dammit,_ she cursed when the lurking heaviness began to rise, followed by blips of black as lucidity started to teeter.  _Just a little longer, please._ Bulla called on yet more depleted energy, determined to wring out every last drop. She couldn't even see Sibe anymore. He'd long disappeared into the cavity of the greater machine, perhaps partially melted and mixed in with whatever alloy comprised his shiny pet by now.

 _Keep going until there's nothing left,_ she demanded, faint tremors beginning to build. Strands of blue started to sway into view.  _Not yet!_ Bulla pleaded, resisting the loss of transformation.  _We're so close._

Her vision was growing splotchy, and all too soon maintaining consciousness became the biggest challenge.

Before she knew it, she was falling, unable to stop herself as she soared towards the dirt like a lump of lead. She heard voices in the distance, the fierce battle cries of her beloved earth companions, and was suddenly reminded of their fight on Advent - the very scuffle that catalysed the idiotic series of events that brought her to this very moment. Much like then, the rest came to her in snippets.

Three breathtaking Super Saiyans delivering unfathomable levels of power to a mountain of senseless metal.

A colossal robot crumbling to the ground in barely recognisable chunks.

Feeble limbs trailing after her plummeting body while she anticipated the inevitably agonising crash into rigid earth.

One of the last things that entered her mind was,  _That didn't hurt as much as I expected?_

Vision blurry, Bulla lifted weighted lids and recognised the outline of the one who'd caught her mid-air, spying first an unruly black mane cascading over broad shoulders, then the thick red armband wrapped tightly around a bulky flexing bicep.

 _'A gift. From my father,'_  he had said so succinctly the first time she'd asked about them, fingering the rubbery texture with great intrigue.

_'Oh, how cute! Was it for your birthday?'_

_'For my_ what _?'_

Bulla blinked sluggishly, struggling to focus her attention.  _I'm sorry,_ she fruitlessly relayed.  _I tried, I really did. I-._ His mouth was moving her direction.  _He's talking to me?_

"...-ood...la."

_Huh?_

She attempted to raise her hand to her face, hoping to wipe the sweat and dust out of her eyes and see his enunciation more clearly, but her body was done cooperating.

 _Oh,_ Bulla smiled through a relieved sigh when the words eventually unjumbled in her ear, exhaling the last tether keeping her from desperate slumber.

_"You did good, Bulla."_

_I did good?_

She thought on that for a hazy few seconds, before affirming serenely,  _I did good,_ and promptly passing out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell we're close to the end? (she says two chapters after the initially planned final. Don't mind me ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ )
> 
> Edit: I totally forgot to say that I came across the idea of Bardock giving Raditz the bands in Dragon ball Zero and just adored it. Don't you just wish we had more backstory on these two 😔


End file.
